Town’s Shopmobility scheme calling for more volunteers to come onboard
CARMARTHEN’S long-standing Shopmobility scheme is calling for more volunteers to come onboard as the town continues its journey out of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The service, which was launched more than a decade ago and based at the multi-storey car park next to St Catherine’s Walk shopping precinct, is open six days a week and offers a range of different-sized battery-powered scooters as well as both powered and selfpropelled wheelchairs.
Chairman Ian Williams said: “It is an essential lifeline to the disabled in the town and we have a total of 13 scooters for hire.”
The past 18 months has been a difficult for Carmarthen town centre with lockdowns and shops shut for long periods of time as the pandemic gripped.
Mr Williams added: “It has been hard, and even now it is difficult to know which days will be busier than others in Carmarthen.
“Some days are busy but others are very quiet, there’s no pattern to it either at the moment.
“One thing that we are not seeing as much of is visitors and coach trips which we used to see perhaps 10 or more scooters hired out at a time for when they came to town.
“Hopefully, as things get better we will see more of that coming back.
Mr Williams added: “We are seeing more people locally hiring scooters in recent weeks and I think that is down to confidence returning for people. They have been double jabbed and of course still have to be careful, but there’s a sense of more people wanting to get out and about.
“That’s what we are here for and why we are now looking for more volunteers and eventually some of those becoming trustees if they want to.”
The service is supported by Carmarthenshire Council and Mr Williams said he wanted to thank both the local authority and Carmarthen Town Council for support over the years.
Anyone wishing to become a volunteer can call the office on 01267 233699, or visit the website for further details at http:// carmarthenshopmobilitycaerfyrddin.org.uk/