Loose and dangerous paving slabs still not fixed in Stratford High Street
THERE is still no date confirmed when work will be carried out to repair Stratford’s pavements and the trip hazards that can be seen around the town.
During a quick walk along High Street last week, the Herald counted 13 wonky, broken or dangerous paving slabs on the Debenhams side of the High Street alone.
On the other side of street, the count is much lower with only four slabs detached from their foundations, but that includes one of the worst examples – an accident waiting to happen – where one particular slab has raised clear from the level surface of the pavement.
On 31st March last year, the Herald reported that pavements in Stratford town centre had been repaired after four years of concern as well as a number of accidents involving shoppers and visitors who had tripped and fallen.
Twelve months on and the pavements in both Sheep Street and Wood Street have held firm, but not so in High Street where a number of slabs have worked loose, much to the frustration of county councillor Kate Rolfe (Lib Dem, Stratford South).
Cllr Rolfe along with county councillor Jenny Fradgley (Lib Dem, Stratford West) make regular inspections of Stratford’s pavements with Warwickshire County Council officers to identify the trouble spots.
And with fellow county councillor, Tim Sinclair (Con, Stratford North), they have arranged funding to carry out last year’s repair work.
More work, however, is clearly needed and the problem has been raised with the Herald by a number of people concerned someone will get injured – especially as the weather improves and the tourist season gets into full swing.
Cllr Rolfe said: “Wood Street and Sheep Street have been fine but High Street has been a problem.
“We did inspect the area recently and the offending slabs have been marked and reported to the county council.
“Retailers tell me that the council turns up, fixes the paving slabs and three days later they’re loose again. I think it’s something to do with the mixture that’s being used because it’s clearly not working. We need to look at ways of fixing this long-term with a stronger mixture.”
A county council spokesperson said: “Warwickshire County Council has continued to carry out monthly safety inspections of the main streets in Stratford town centre. These inspections identify and assess defects, which are then repaired in line with our published repair times.
“Our inspection teams operate all year round inspecting our highways across the county. This process is greatly helped by resident’s assistance and if anyone finds highway defects, we encourage them to report them to us by visiting www.warwickshire.gov.uk/reportit or by calling our customer service centre on 01926 412515.”
