Sunbury residents welcome improvements to local pavements

Cllr Harry Boparai, Surrey Lib Dem member for Sunbury Common and Ashford Common, has received thanks for helping improve road safety for vulnerable residents in Sunbury-on-Thames, by using some of his councillor allocation to fund improvements to local pavements.

Harry explained: “When I was first elected, I was contacted by Victoria, a resident with mobility issues who uses a wheelchair. She expressed concerns about how difficult it was for her and other residents to get to a local park.

“When I visited this route, the trees were overgrown, cars were parked on grass verges, and more importantly, there were no dips in the pavement. I am happy to report that all these issues have been resolved using some of my allocation from Surrey County Council.

“It meant a lot to me last week to receive some great feedback from Victoria.”

She said: “The benefits of the new dips in Kenyngton Drive and Churchill Way have been felt by many in the community, not only those with disabilities, but also those with other impediments such as the elderly, as well as parents, in particular those with pushchairs and young children on trikes.

“I would like to thank Cllr Boparai for his kind generosity for helping to fund these new dips. However, I do think that Surrey County Council should be doing more to make the area more accessible for the whole community.”

In response Harry went on to say: “These life-improving adjustments should not have to come out of a councillor’s allocation as a ‘nice to do’. It requires a dedicated allocation from the Surrey Highways budget to assist residents like Victoria. I shall be taking this up with Surrey Highways to see how we can do things differently in the future.”