Making roadworks more accessible for the disabled

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Tue 15th Jan 2008

Surrey County Council is among the first authorities in the country to take active steps to ensure our road works are safe for disabled residents.

The safety of everyone in Surrey is a top priority for the council, but in the past some signage surrounding road works has been placed without enough thought for residents who might have mobility problems or limited vision.

The issue is a national problem and not specific to Surrey, but the council and our contractor Ringway, have decided to act to make sure we offer the best possible service to all our residents. Problems can occur when maintenance work is taking place on roads and the pavement needs to be closed.

In these situations there will be signage letting pedestrians know they should cross the road, which is not a problem for able-bodied people. However, the council is to look at options for helping disabled residents safely negotiate the works.

David Munro, Executive Portfolio Holder for Transport, said: "This is something that is really important. I believe all our residents deserve to be treated equally and we will make sure that our streets are accessible to disabled residents as they are to the able bodied while we carry out our works."