Manukau residents who want to complain about cracked footpaths finally have someone to call - and it's not the media.
Pedestrians, joggers and people who use wheelchairs and mobility scooters will unite next week to form an action group that will refuse to be walked over.
The first meeting of their Manukau City Walking User Group is on Wednesday, November 19.
Once established, the group will campaign for well-maintained, walker-friendly footpaths.
The group will send authorities updates and expects to be consulted when the council plans any changes. It also plans to work with other agencies to improve the walking environment, to carry out reviews of streets and to develop maps of walking routes.
Young Yon Cho, who lives in Dannemora, has joined the group. His job as an electricity meter reader means that he pounds Manukau's pavements every day. He believes New Zealand has the best footpaths and roads in the world and wants it to stay that way.
Mr Cho came to this country from South Korea five years ago. He has been a meter reader for nearly four years, mostly in Manukau, but also in Kohimarama and Mission Bay.
He believes Manukau City looks after footpaths extremely well and wants to make sure the council continues to do so, pointing out that path designs needs to be easy to use, not just for fit, healthy people "but for disabled people, children, mums with pushchairs and elderly people in scooters".
"It's a good idea to have local people look after the footpaths," he says, "and make sure the council stays doing a good job."
His colleague, Jeff Cook, agrees. He says most of the footpaths in east Manukau, where he works, are relatively well maintained and he thinks a watchdog-type group will ensure the council keeps it that way.
"There are some occasions when I've seen line markings for areas that are going to be ripped up and replaced, and I think there are other areas that probably could do with the work first," he says.
Tanu Toso of the council's disability steering group, which helps advise the council on ways to improve opportunities for people with disabilities, needs a wheelchair to get around and will definitely be at the meeting. He urges other concerned people to come along.
"The more perspectives we get, the closer we are to getting a true, holistic point of view," he says. Mr Toso says the council needs to improve the way footpaths join roads. He is also concerned about access to major shopping centres.
"There aren't enough pedestrian crossings, and shopping centres are designed more for vehicles being able to get there and park up than for people walking to the shopping centre or negotiating that in a wheelchair."
The group will be supported by Living Streets Aotearoa, which has a contract with the NZ Transport Agency to develop a network of groups nationwide.
There are already groups in Hamilton, Taupo, Wellington, Nelson, Marlborough, Christchurch and Dunedin, and more are forming in Palmerston North, New Plymouth and on the West Coast. A North Shore group met for the first time last week.
Auckland networker Kelvin Aris contacted Manukau City Council and several other organisations, such as the health board, Grey Power and Counties Manukau Sport to gauge support.
"I've had fantastic feedback from interested parties in the area," Mr Aris says.
"Some are very enthusiastic and have people working in community development already and are very keen to be involved in active transport initiatives."
Meeting on Wednesday, November 19, Tui Room, Otara Town Centre, 10am. Ph 378 0953.
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