An amputee who broke his femur slipping on pavers in Whangarei's CBD is slamming council's move to sandblast rather than replace them.
Wayne Wheeler, 66, snapped the ball off the top of his left hip after slipping and falling on wet pavers in Rathbone St a year ago.
A story in the Northern Advocate about Mr Wheeler - who wears a prosthetic right leg after a hunting accident 30 years ago - prompted Whangarei District Council (WDC) to look for ways to reduce the slipperiness of the pavers in the CBD, opting for etching in May this year.
But etching only worked for a short time, and now council has issued a tender for contractors to sand blast the pavers - expected to cost between $250,000 and $300,000. The cost of replacing the pavers is estimated at $1.25million.
"While the acid etching showed good results after application, re-testing has shown a rapid decline in the friction factor, even after the etching was re-done at the supplier's cost," WDC road maintenance engineer Michael Batchelor said.