Ku-ring-gai residents waiting 50-plus years for a footpath

Following the death of an elderly pedestrian on the streets of Gordon, upper North Shore residents are calling on Ku-ring-gai council to urgently install footpaths.

What happened: On the morning of November 13, emergency services were called to Gordon after an elderly man was struck by a car. He was transported to Royal North Shore Hospital, but died the following day.

His death has sparked calls from the community for improved pedestrian infrastructure in the area, particularly along St Johns Avenue, where the 92-year-old man was struck. 

A petition has been submitted ahead of the next Ku-ring-gai Council meeting, on December 16, calling for footpaths on both sides of the avenue. The hard copy and online petitions have been signed a total of more than 300 times.

Police reports indicate the elderly man was walking on St Johns Road at the time of the incident. Locals say raised tree roots and uneven verges force those using it as a thoroughfare — people pushing prams, kids walking to the bus stop, elderly folks on a morning constitutional — to walk on the road.

Whose job: The maintenance and installation of footpaths falls under the responsibility of local government. However, local councils across the upper North Shore face lengthy backlogs.

According to Hornsby Shire councillor, Nathan Tilbury, it will be around 50 years before all current footpath projects are completed in the LGA. 

For Ku-ring-gai, it will be 2082 before all roads have a footpath on at least one side. Ku-ring-gai Council claims, however, that if it is able to secure its proposed rate increase next year, that figure will be reduced to 2045.

What happens now: Ku-ring-gai Councillor Indu Balachandran, who represents Gordon Ward, told the Lorikeet she has been speaking with council staff about how the footpath can be prioritised.

She said speed bumps along St Johns Road were being considered as a stop-gap measure until the footpaths are complete.