‘Bound up inside’: Cairns residents call for more footpaths to help elderly and people with disabilities

A Cairns paraplegic is calling for more footpaths to be built in inner-city suburbs with advocates arguing more walkways will give the elderly and those with mobility issues a greater sense of independence.

Bungalow resident and T-10 paraplegic, Gary Potter, 68, is lobbying Cairns Regional Council to establish a footpath on his suburban street. Division 5 councillor Rob Pyne is supporting Mr Potter's efforts. Picture: Samuel Davis

A Cairns paraplegic is calling for more footpaths to be built in inner-city suburbs, with an advocate arguing more walkways will give the elderly and those with mobility issues a greater sense of independence.

Bungalow resident Gary Potter has lived with limited motor function below his waist for more than 40 years after a diving accident that damaged his spine in the late 1980s.

And while the proud chef has fought to regain some movement through his legs, doctors predict the 68-year-old will be wheelchair bound in the near future.

“When I was recovering, I used to go down to the beach and walk and fall, walk and fall,” Mr Potter said.

“Eventually, I built up enough muscle mass to stand up on my own. As my stamina got better, I got a job and people accepted that ‘Gary has a bit of a limp’.”

But the uneven verges along Allan St, near the T-10 paraplegic’s home are too difficult for him and his beloved dog, Raiden, to traverse.

“If I could take my dog around the block for some exercise it would be brilliant,” Mr Potter said.

“It’d be great if there was a path on just one side of the street to keep people off the road.”

Mr Potter said the lack of sidewalks on his street, where young families and other disabled residents live, has become a safety concern.

“Because the verges are so uneven, people just walk up the middle of the road because there are no pathways,” he said.

“All you need is one car to come screaming around the corner and you’ll get ‘skediddled’ across the road.”

Cairns Regional Council allocated a record amount on sidewalks in last year’s budget but Division 5 councillor Rob Pyne said more could be done.

“The council is encouraging in-fill development in these suburbs, so they’re getting more rates every time this area grows,” Mr Pyne said.

“At the moment one ninth (of the footpath budget) goes to each division. But if you’re in Smithfield, or Mount Peter, they’re new developments that are getting footpaths anyway.

“There’s no acknowledgement of the historical neglect of inner-city suburbs. We need an equity budget to look at some of these smaller jobs.”

Cairns city resident Denis Craven says he is largely housebound as a result of not having a sidewalk near his home. Picture: Samuel Davis

Cairns city resident Denis Craven said a path near his Minnie St home would dramatically change his quality of life.

“It would enable me to get out, feel a sense of independence again,” the 83-year-old wheelchair bound resident said.

“I could go down to the corner to the coffee shop on my own. At the moment, I have to wait for someone to take me there.

“Sitting in a chair on your own, you get bound up inside.”

Mr Craven, who has been in a wheelchair since hurting his hip and ankle five years ago, said it was bewildering that a street so close to the CBD still didn’t have a sidewalk.

“Nobody’s taking responsibility for anything,” he said.

“I worked when I was 13 pulling guts out of sheep, made good money and bought a bicycle out of it.

“You wouldn’t dare muck up in those days, or you’d get a smack in the ear. But today, you do nothing and get rewarded.”

Originally published as ‘Bound up inside’: Cairns residents call for more footpaths to help elderly and people with disabilities