Residents petition over ‘dangerous’ footpaths

Press, 6 October 1988, Page 7

Residents petition over ‘dangerous’ footpaths

Residents of Aranui yesterday petitioned the Christchurch City Council for action on their “dangerous” footpaths. Ms Mary Harrison told the council’s works and traffic committee that the concrete-slab footpaths in Aidershot, Hampshire, and Portsmouth streets were dangerous. The tilting slabs tripped children and the elderly, she said. The problem and the complaints were not new, she told councillors. The chairman of the

works committee, Cr Ron Wright, assured her that if funding was available something would be done about the paths. It was likely that would not happen until next year, he said. The council’s streetworks engineer, Mr Bruce Scott, said the paths were a source of worry for staff. They were about 30 years old and the solution was to replace them. Staff were concentrating on replacing the vehicle entries across the concrete paths, where the worst tilting occurred.

Ms Harrison sought the replacement of the slabs with asphalt. Footpaths were also discussed as part of a planned amenity linkage. Cobblestone paving is proposed to provide a visual link between city amenities. The paving would be the base for the introduction of paving of centralcity footpaths. Colombo Street between Armagh Street and Cashel Street, Worcester Street between Cathedral Square and Rolleston Avenue,

and Oxford Terrace between Armagh Street and Cashel Street were approved as the first areas to be paved. If the council endorses the committee’s recommendation, budget provision for a start to the work will be made next year. A recommendation to prohibit any paving of footpaths outside the designated linkage was rejected. The application of the Coachman Inn to pave its Gloucester Street footpath was approved.