IT’S not only inconsiderate cyclists who pose a danger to pedestrians when they ride their bikes on pavements and other pedestrian areas – some owners of mobility scooters are just as dangerous.
I was waiting with a number of other people at a bus stop where Poole Road meets St Michael's roundabout earlier this week when we had to scatter in all directions as an elderly gentleman (wrong word, perhaps) sped past us – shouting "Out of the way!" as he did so.
When I challenged him over his reckless "driving" he told me that we could see he was disabled and it was up to us to get out of HIS way.
During the summer on several occasions I observed another "gentleman" speeding through the crowds in the lower gardens, sounding his horn and yelling at people to "Get out of the way".
And a few months back, as I was leaving the Waitrose store on Ashley Road, a woman on a mobility scooter swung her vehicle through the doors and shot off down the aisles like a bat out of hell – with absolutely no consideration for other customers.
Mobility scooters are becoming increasingly common – but it needs to be made absolutely clear to users that it is a "privilege" for them to use their vehicles on pavements, that pedestrians have right of way and that it is up to them to watch out for people on foot – not the other way round.
Robert Readman
Norwich Avenue West, Bournemouth
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