An electric wheelchair is your only means of independent mobility.
This should mean you can go out and get a coffee.
But the footpath between Huon Regional Care (HRC) in Franklin and Frank’s Cider is too dangerous to navigate – the distance is less than a kilometre.
So you’re stuck.
Chris Kelly, resident of Huon Valley Regional Care in Franklin, is clearly frustrated.
“At least four other residents here have wheelchairs like mine, but we can’t go down the street to the cafe,” he said.
Accompanied by a nurse, his attempt to traverse the footpath running between the care facility and Frank’s was ‘a disaster’.
The cobblestone bricks used on the five or six driveways leading on to the highway are red flags for the fact that the footpath itself, being part of the driveways, slopes down to the edge of the road.
Not the ideal scenario when you’re of a certain age, and entirely reliant on four wheels.
With a background in management, Mr Kelly did not make a tentative enquiry to Huon Valley Council or write a letter to the paper.
“I know that when you need something done, it’s best to go straight to the top.”
His phone call to the mayor, Sally Doyle, resulted in a visit from council to take a look at the problem.
Mr Kelly did not feel hopeful that his concerns would be acted upon.
“It will be about the money,” he said.
The recent improvements to the footpath between Huonville and Ranelagh were funded through the Australian Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program, about which Mayor Sally Doyle said, “These infrastructure improvements are about creating safer, more connected communities.”
Chris Kelly is waiting.
