Wheelchair users forced into road to reach dropped kerbs

Wheelchair users forced into road to reach dropped kerbs

Wheelchair users are being forced to use a road to get to dropped kerbs onto the pavement in Rochdale town centre.

The disabled parking spaces by the side of the town hall, under the tower on Packer Street, by the Gracie Fields statue have no dropped kerbs, causing those using wheelchairs into the road, negotiating traffic entering and leaving the town hall car park.

The disabled parking places were built during the renovations of the town hall square and the erection of the Gracie Fields statue which was unveiled in September 2016.

Rochdale Online asked the council when they would be altering the bays and installing dropped kerbs:

‘Are there plans to lower the pavement in front of the disabled bays to enable wheelchair users to get onto the pavement safely?’

Emma Birkett, Heritage Director at Rochdale Development Agency, said: “We are currently working with landscape architects, Gillespies, to redesign the entire space around the town hall as part of the redevelopment of this area and the wider restoration of the town hall.

“Making this whole area more accessible for everybody, including people with disabilities, is a major part of our plans for the town hall and Town Hall Square and we will be consulting with members of the public, including disability groups, as we develop these plans in more detail.”