SLIPPERY STREETS.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume VI, Issue 1624, 29 April 1919, Page 6

SLIPPERY STREETS.

To the Editor of THE SUN. . Sir,—lt will be noted that a trap accident happened in Cashel Street on Saturday morning whereby an infant was killed and its mother badly injured through the horse falling on the slippery street. Unfortunately this is not the first accident that has happened in the vicinity,- and lately there have been times when hardly a day has passed without one. In one that I witnessed, all four occupants of the vehicle were thrown out, and these included a lady and two children. It was fortunate that something more serious did not happen on that occasion. A day or so afterwards a lady and gentleman were thrown out at the same spot. The lady was dazed for some time, and later I was told that her wrist was broken, On three separate occasions I rang up the city surveyor's office shortly after accidents had occurred, and on the third occasion I was very abruptly spoken to and told that the accidents were due to careless driving, and the telephone was then immediately rung off. I noted, howevlr, that a day or so later grit had been spread on the street, but-this was only a temporary palliative, as it was soon blown away, and immediately this happened we had the distressing caso on Saturday. In the accidents I saw I most emphatically deny that reckless driving was the contributory cause, and we shall certainly have many more such if drastic steps are not taken by the city authorities to remedy the Trouble.—l am, etc., W. H. TISDALL.

To the Editor of THE SUN. Sir, —Being a constant reader of your paper, I notice a Sun representative interviewed Mr Dobson, city surveyor, re the state of some of the city streets, and, rightly so. It is quite time something was done to prevent such sad accidents as the one that happened last, week in which a child lost its life. Will, the city surveyor wait till several more serious accidents happen? I say the end of Cashel Street between Oxford Terrace and Colombo ' Street is quite unsafe for any horse to be driven on any dull morning, and the fact that the shopkeepers in the street say it averages a horse down a day is putting it mildly. 1* have seen several down in one morning, and I consider I can drive a horse as well as most people. I must confess I have been .very lucky to escape, having had my horse down several times. There is no need to have a street a danger to people’s lives to maintain what Mr Dobson calls a good street, bubseemingly it is better to have an accident, fatal or otherwise, than put some grit on Cashel Street. There is no need to talk such rot as to say the whole of the 175 miles of streets all want grit, as any one of common sense knows that most of the streets in Christchurch are quite safe. Surely it would not cost so much to do Cashel Street, as if is the worst street to drive on in any big city I have been in. There is no need to try and put the blame on to anyone, else’s shoulders when the whole thing could be made quite safe with a coating of grit, now and then. —I am, etc., ' WM, HENRY. Ricearton, April 29. , [Wc notice that the council’s workmen are busy to-day in tarring and sanding Cashel Street.—Ed. The Son.) •