Be careful on a trip around Peterborough

As a motorist have you ever been annoyed by a jogger running on the road when there is a perfectly good pavement? And have you ever wondered why a person, presumably interested in staying fit, would risk a stay in hospital by offering themselves as a target for a car?

And let’s face it Peterbor- ough has a (too large) minority of drivers who would happily drive at a jogger to teach them a lesson for being on ‘their’ road.

The reason is the appalling state of the pavements in this city.

Cathedral Square, Bridge Street and Long Causeway may well be relatively ‘paved with gold’ but venture further out of the city centre and it’s a different story.

The town end of Broadway is a disgrace – even a moderate rainfall floods the pavement.

And if you go further out to residential areas the story is the same.

Near my house, the pavements are an uneven and unsightly patchwork quilt of tar and asphalt.

Trips and stumbles await the unwary.

It must make life difficult for anyone with mobility issues. I know jogging on them takes a horrible toll on the ankles and knees and makes that lovely smooth road nearby look very appealing.

Part of the problem is the pavements are regularly dug up by utility companies.

Their work may be necessary and unavoidable, but who is checking the pavement is returned to an acceptable condition?