Take care with your wheelie bin

Twenty/twenty vision and mobility is something many of us take for granted, however there are many living in our community who find even simple tasks like walking along the footpath dangerous.

Pukekohe resident Ralph Boggust (77) is vision impaired, and finds the obstacles left on the footpath near his house on West Street a hazard he must negotiate on his walk around town.

Wheelie and recycling bins left on footpaths or bins blown over by the wind, are the main offenders, along with cars parked across footpaths.

Mr Boggust says, “Walking into town can be a little like walking through a minefield sometimes, especially with rubbish bins strewn all over the footpath. For the vision impaired or the elderly, it can be very dangerous. Then there’s the cars parked on the footpath, which are another obstacle.”

Franklin District Council GM Works and Services Barry Bergin has appealed to the community to ensure they think about others when they place their bins and rubbish bags out for collection.

“There are members of the public who are blind or vision impaired or don’t have the mobility to get around objects left on footpaths. There are a couple of things the public can do to help residents like Mr Boggust travel along our footpaths safely. Firstly – place your rubbish directly on the edge of the kerb, or safely away from the footpath. Also, don’t place your rubbish out for collection until after 5.30pm the day before, and retrieve it from the footpath as soon as possible after collection. A couple of simple steps like this can greatly increase safety for others.”

Franklin District Council has spent more than $300,000 this year on improving the condition of footpaths in the district.