Disabled need guide to town streets (From Warrington Guardian)

Disabled need guide to town streets

DISABLED people could be given a guide to Knutsford's streets to stop them getting stuck or scared.

Pam Duxbury, a member of Knutsford Civic Society, suggested the idea after a woman told her she had been terrified during a recent visit.

"The pavements are so uneven and narrow that it made life a bit difficult and a bit scary for her," she said.

Mrs Duxbury, of Woodvale Road, Knutsford, met the disabled woman when she spoke at a meeting of the Embroiderers' Guild.

Last week she told Knutsford Town Council that the woman had asked about a street guide for disabled people.

Clr Wilson Hamman said members could speak to local motorised scooter and wheelchair users about the best routes.

"We could certainly give guidelines as to the pitfalls to avoid," he said.

Bob Quin, 85, has used a motorised scooter to visit Knutsford's shops for 10 years and travels up to 1,500 miles on it each year.

The former optician who lives in Mobberley Road, Knutsford, visits the town centre about five times a week. On Thursday he said there were awkward spots in Princess Street and King Street that disabled people could be warned about.

"There are certain areas where it's impossible to go," he said.

Mr Quin, who ran a business in King Street for 45 years, knows the shortcuts and safer routes through Knutsford.

The former driver said disabled people found it impossible to use the pavement near the Hallmark card shop in King Street.

He also said scooter users would struggle to travel towards Canute Square along narrow parts of the right-hand side pavement in Princess Street.

"If you don't know them you'll get there and then have to back track," he said. But Mr Quin believes the service at Knutsford's town centre shops is a great help for many disabled people.

He said staff were happy to speak to him outside the store if access was difficult and they often brought stock out into the street.

"Visitors will find that the shopkeepers are wonderfully helpful," he said.

Mr Quin believes a guide to disabled access in Knutsford would help visitors who were unsure about the town.

But he said the most important improvement that could be made was the installation of more dropped kerbs.

"The biggest point is to get some more of those," he said.

Knutsford Town Council is now considering the creation of a guide to disabled access.

Mrs Duxbury said the Civic Society would also discuss the subject its next meeting in October.

amac@guardiangrp.co.uk