MIRIAM Ledger can recall her toe getting caught on a small crack in the Howick Street footpath just seconds before a nasty fall last Thursday afternoon.
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Mrs Ledger stumbled for a couple of steps before she fell heavily near the Blowes Clothing corner.
The accident left her badly battered and bruised – and nursing a possible fracture in her shoulder – and has again highlighted the poor condition of many footpaths in and around the CBD.
Bathurst Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association president John Hollis raised the condition of Bathurst footpaths at a recent council meeting and asked what was being done to fix the problem.
He was told $100,000 had been set aside in the 2017-18 budget for footpath repairs but Mr Hollis fears that will barely scratch the surface of the problem.
He wants to see a fully planned and budgeted campaign of repairs that goes well beyond the yellow warning lines now spray-painted across the city.
Mrs Ledger admitted she did not trip on a badly broken footpath but her fall showed how dangerous even the smallest crack could be.
Mrs Ledger dislocated her shoulder in the fall and will have further tests on Tuesday to determine if there has been a break.
She does not want to see anyone else go through the same pain.
“The worst thing is it really knocks you about and you lose a bit of your confidence,” Mrs Ledger said of the fall.
It really knocks you about and you lose your confidence.
- Miriam Ledger
“I need to keep my arm in a sling for at least six weeks and I can’t drive for six weeks. It just changes everything.
“I can’t stress enough how careful you have to be just walking around.”
Mr Hollis said he had received plenty of support from the community since the Western Advocate published an article 10 days ago on his push for footpath repairs.
“It was an issue raised at a CPSA meeting as a threat to senior people as they move around the whole city but particularly the CBD where there’s a higher density of people moving around,” he said.
“With that in mind I felt it was important to raise the issue with council.”
Mr Hollis commended council on its survey to identify damaged footpaths around the city but said that was just the start.
“What’s needed is a greater structured effort to formalise a plan of action and, of course, you need a proper budget allocation,” he said.
“It’s a big job and it can’t be all done at once but I could see it being done by breaking the CBD down into smaller areas and tackling each of those areas one at a time.
“The situation is critical because just the slightest inconsistency can cause a fall.”
