Sir – As a severely disabled person and wheelchair user, and particularly in my position as chairman of Unlimited Oxfordshire, can I add our concern to other voices about the risks disabled people will face in Frideswide Square in the future, and those that disabled people face in the current disruption caused by the roadworks.
Peoples with sight loss are not the only ones who have difficulty crossing roads; deaf people, wheelchair users and those who use walking aids, and many with lower limb disabilities, will have difficulties without conventional traffic lights and their indicators.
We also have concerns about cyclists mixing with blind and deaf people on shared pavements. Even if evidence suggests that these environments are safe, we do not feel confident in them and this stops us using them.
We went to great lengths to discuss these issues with county council transport officers in the early design stages. We’re not convinced we’ve been listened to.
Are we going to have to wait for a death or serious injury before somebody considers how Oxford’s disabled people can possibly feel ‘equal’ in this new scheme?
Peter Hindshaw
Chairman, Unlimited Oxfordshire
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