Annex B – Consultation response received

The consultation responses received have been reproduced below in an anonymised format.

Response 1

Hi

I attach a photo to demonstrate why item 7 (draft vehicle crossings) needs to include equality impact assessment and include cyclists.

I took this photo today while walking through Dringhouses. Lots of houses had dropped kerbs that went across a pavement and then an off-road cycle route. In this case the drop kerb bit makes the cycle route camber uneven which can be dangerous for people riding trikes, cargo cycles etc (throwing the cycle off balance and risking tipping it over). Similarly when the drop kerb crosses a pavement it can make the pavement very awkward for people using wheelchairs and mobility scooters. It might not look like much of a change in gradient, but believe me it can feel like a mountain when you try riding a trike or steering a wheelchair!

I’m sure there are ways of designing the drop kerb to minimise this effect and if equality impact assessments are carried out this should pick this up.

Response 2

Greetings,

I am responding as a totally blind person. What I say will apply to other people with very little or no sight and to guide dog owners whose dogs are trained to work to the kerb.

One of the greatest dangers I face when walking about alone is that of wandering into the road without realising it. This is possible at any point where the kerb has been dropped to the level of the carriageway. I can detect a 6-mm kerb, or less if I am expecting it and if the pavement is not too uneven. I can also perceive slope. The minimum gradient that I can perceive has not been measured, but is probably less that 1 in 40. Here again, the more even the pavement, the more likely I am to perceive the slope which denotes its edge. If the footway has been paved with slabs I will notice the difference between it and the carriageway even if there is no change of level, but other commonly used surfaces are too similar for me to detect the boundary reliably. Dropped kerbs are often indicated by a painted line or a change of colour which most people can see, but I cannot. I need a tactile strip in places where there is no change of level or texture.

Regards,