Pavements in Bognor are 'unsafe' - claim

The severe slope of sections of footway, such as Middleton Road in Middleton, leaves them liable to be tilted out of their electric scooters.

One user, Anne-Marie Griffiths, 35, of Felpham, said: "The pavements are not good. There are many places that don't have dropped kerbs."

That entailed either a diversion to find a safe crossing point, said administrative officer Anne-Marie, who has cerebral palsy, or taking a risk by travelling in the road.

"The pavements are also very uneven. It's not so bad in my mobility scooter because it is powered, but I can't use my wheelchair on them."

Middleton man Calvin Watson knows of one man who fell from his scooter along Middleton Road and had to be helped back to his feet.

He said: "It's a serious problem and it's going to cause a serious accident. I'm trying to get it looked at before, rather than after, that happens.

"The wheelchair users around here are extremely worried. West Sussex County Council says the footpath is safe. Everyone else I know says it isn't."

The problem area is the crossfalls along 60m of footpath between ten of the houses.

Mr Watson said the relevant British Standard dictates such slopes should have a slope of no more than one in 40. But those on Middleton Road drop as much as one in 15. "That's a four-degree difference," he said.

"The problem is made worse because lorries park on the pavement when making deliveries and that has pushed the pavement down further."

He obtained a quote from a private firm to carry out the repairs for 4,250. That compared starkly with the 60,000 which the county council has stated it would need to find for the scheme.

A county council spokesman said: "We have not ruled out making some pavement realignments in that area. But we can't afford to do it in this financial year."