Residents demand action over "forgotten" footpaths
8:00am Monday 13th February 2012 in Where I Live By Tom Barnes
Residents demand action over "forgotten" Chessington footpaths
Residents of a Chessington estate have called on Kingston Council to fix “dangerous” footpaths that have been overlooked for more than two years.
Ray Austin, chairman of the Chessington Court Residents’ Association, said gaps and cracks in footpaths in Frimley Road, identified as hazardous two years ago, had been forgotten by the council.
At a south of the borough meeting last Tuesday, Mr Austin criticised road safety officers for not including the Chessington estate road as a priority for maintenance.
Mr Austin said residents had been patient with budget stretched and work spent on other roads, including more than £750,000 on Garrison Lane, but now wanted action.
He also said that work carried out on the road in 2011 had failed to tackle the problems.
He said: “They identified the problem two years ago – in that time it is only going to have got worse.
“Why then, when we have been patiently waiting for money to appear in the budget for road maintenance, has Frimley Road been ignored?”
Councillor Rachel Reid, who chaired the meeting, said money would be allocated from Frimley Road as soon as it became available.
She said: “An officer’s report found that other roads in the borough had deteriorated at a greater rate to Frimley Road but when we have the money we will address the problem.
“All credit must go to Ray who stayed right until the end of behalf of his residents. His commitment is very commendable.”
