A 90-year-old ex-councillor is calling on Barking and Dagenham Council to fix a problem pavement that becomes flooded close to the new Asda supermarket in Chadwell Heath.
Albert Gibbs, of Whalebone Lane South, who served as an independent councillor in the borough for 23 years until 2005, hasn’t given up trying to improve the area and has a problem very close to home.
A large puddle, about six foot by nine foot in size, forms on the pavement in front of his house after heavy rain taking days to clear, with another longer puddle also making life tricky for pedestrians in front of a neighbour’s house.
Mr Gibbs, who was a ward councillor representing Chadwell Heath Residents’ Association for Chadwell Heath ward and then Whalebone ward, said: “I’ve got a mobility scooter. If I don’t go on it, I take the car out. So it [the puddle] doesn’t worry me.
“The puddle can stay there forever and a day but I don’t think it’s fair on pedestrians.
“When we get a heavy, heavy downpour, the whole road is flooded, ever since I moved here in the 1950s.
“My concern is that with Asda, there’s far more pedestrian traffic down there.
“It’s obstructing the footpath.”
The Asda store opened on October 28 in Whalebone Lane South.
Cars are able to park in bays on the pavement, so when it rains, Mr Gibbs said residents are often forced to walk through the large puddles and get their feet wet.
Mr Gibbs said depressions in the pavement were caused by cars driving on it to park.
The problem spot in front of his home was last filled in more than seven years ago, he said, and he has frequently raised the issue with Whalebone ward councillors and contacted the council himself. He said council workers laid tarmac on a “foot square” area last year but failed to deal with the two puddle spots. He has taken to salting the spot in front of his house in winter to prevent people slipping and he has considered buying a fishing gnome to place next to the puddle.
The council didn’t respond before the Post went to press.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here