Residents of an Auckland beachside community are frustrated with the dangerous footpaths on their roads, some of which have caused severe injuries.
Titirangi resident Zoe Hawkins has been trying for years to get Auckland Transport (AT) to hear their concerns for the footpaths on Wood Bay Rd, Otitori Bay Rd, Tanekaha Rd and Kohu Rd.
She bashed her knee a few years ago while she was out running and tripped over wired mesh.
After talking to a few other residents, Hawkins found others too have not been so lucky.
“We need urgent maintenance on our wooden footpaths,” Hawkins said.
“I’m not talking cosmetic – I’m talking gaping holes, nails, and rusty bolts.”
She said the footpaths, wooden and concrete have been deteriorating for years. Areas in the concrete path were cracked and uneven, the wooden boardwalks were slippery, had rotting wood, some with holes and loose mesh netting.
Hawkins said the state of the footpaths was not ideal, especially for disabled people and mothers who take their babies out.
“People are resorting to walking on the road, to avoid having to walk on these footpaths, and some who just choose not to walk at all because it’s so unsafe.”
Teenager, Annika Hogguer Mearns, broke her ankle last year, while out walking her dog Issy on Wood Bay Rd.
Three metal rods were inserted during surgery, and she couldn’t walk for more than a month. She was in crutches for a further two months.
“I slipped on the wooden footpath, and the mesh gripping was coming off. It had been raining that day, it was slippery … was just quite a bad combination,” the 17-year-old said.
She said she was annoyed after the accident, because slippery, deteriorating and dishevelled footpaths were common in Titirangi.
“I would just like them to be fixed so no one ends up in the same situation I was in, because it’s not fun.”
Hawkins was calling on AT to do something, and consider longer-term maintenance.
“It desperately needs someone to come out, walk down the street, find the areas that are damaged and fix it.
“But also, to look at a long-term maintenance plan to make sure that this doesn’t keep happening.”
An AT spokesperson said they have received photos of the footpaths in question from a concerned member of the Titirangi community.
“But we were not provided with their specific locations,” he said.
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“We are currently working through this to find the locations, make assessments, and then plan our next steps to fix the issues.”
He said AT was happy to carry out maintenance, as and when required.
“We do rely on support from the public who can help us with specific reports of problems they encounter.
“We advise that people call our call centre 09 355 353 to report specific issues with specific locations, or use our web service link.”
This would ensure contractors were dispatched to make safe any urgent issues, and other repairs would be quantified and put on their priority-based forward works program, he said.
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