Post helps OAP win campaign for drop kerb
Robert thanks us for taking up his issue
A disabled pensioner has won a long-running campaign for a drop kerb to be installed near his home thanks to the Ayrshire Post.
Former ambulance technician Robert Campbell, 65, has never been able to access a pedestrian pathway that leads into Ellisland Square and Souter Place, Ayr.
Robert gets around the Forehill area using a mobility scooter but the kerb at the pedestrian pathway is too high to negotiate.
And by accessing the pathway, it’s the quickest route for Robert to take if he wants to visit his daughter on Castlehill Road. It means Robert must instead negotiate the entire length of Ellisland Place, then turn right into Ellisland Square; travel along Ellisland Square before joining the junction of Mount Oliphant Crescent; negotiate a stretch of Mount Oliphant Crescent, turn right at the roundabout to access Ellisland Square; negotiate Ellisland Square then access Castlehill Road.
The ideal route to his daughter’s house, via the pathway in the Ellisland Place cul-de-sac, would shave minutes off his journey - if a drop kerb was there.
Not only would it cut down Robert’s journey time, it would save energy on his battery-operated scooter.
He’s been in touch with both South Ayrshire Council and Forehill, Holmston and Masonhill Community Council to see if they could assist but until this week, he wasn’t making any headway.
The owner occupier said: “I’m disabled and I’ve got a mobility scooter. Outside my home in Ellisland Place, there’s a pedestrian path to take you into the next street, but my scooter can’t get up it.
“It means I have to go three times the distance to go to my daughter’s home at Castlehill roundabout. It’s a long, roundabout way to get to my daughter’s.”
Mr Campbell, who lives in a semidetached house and was forced to retire due to ill health, has phoned the local authority and written to them about his problem. The Post also contacted South Ayrshire Council about the issue.
Following a thorough investigation, it has been revealed that the kerb on which the lane sits comes under the auspices of Ayrshire Roads Alliance. And thanks to the Post’s intervention, roads chiefs are set to grant Robert’s request.
Kevin Braidwood, head of roads at Ayrshire Roads Alliance, said: “We will look at putting in a dropped kerb, so Mr Campbell can access the path.”
Robert said: “I’d personally like to thank the Post for their help in this matter, as it is greatly appreciated.”