A Ballarat East resident is calling for council to build a footpath on a stretch of "dangerous" road near Lake Esmond, as the council releases the plans for this year's municipal footpath program.
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Larter Street resident David Crocker lives two doors down from the entrance to Lake Esmond, and says he frequently sees near misses and people getting "touched" by cars due to the street's lack of pedestrian access.
No footpath exists on either side of Larter Street, requiring those without a car to often walk on the side of the road to gain access to Lake Esmond.
DO YOU HAVE A DANGEROUS FOOTPATH IN YOUR AREA? HAVE YOUR SAY BELOW.
"My concern is for the safety of the people visiting. We get anywhere between 50 to 100 people a day, summer and winter, summer is obviously a lot busier.
"You get little kids on bikes, trikes and scooters. You get old people with walking sticks. They are forced to walk on the road because the footpath is non-existent.
"We have had several people, not seriously injured, but touched with cars - that is the best way to put it. We have had several car crashes into poles and cars into cars."
Mr Crocker said he has been bringing the issue up with councillors for two years now, and recently received word mayor Des Hudson would discuss the issue with the council.
City of Ballarat infrastructure and environment director Bridget Wetherall said the council was aware of the issue of pedestrian access on Larter Street, and urged residents to inform the council if they had concerns about a footpath nearby.
"A number of City of Ballarat councillors are meeting with the residents of Larter Street about the need for a footpath in this location, in the coming weeks," Ms Wetherall said.
"There are many criteria to take into consideration in regard to prioritising new footpath construction, such as land use, linkage to other paths, pedestrian catchments and bus routes.
"We urge the residents to advocate for the footpath in this location, as it will be taken into consideration for the development of the upcoming Footpath Strategy."
It comes as the City of Ballarat put out locations for its 2023/24 footpath program, with $865,000 being spent on eight new footpaths across the city.
The locations include; Albert Street in Miners Rest, from Giffard Street to Dundas Place, Smythes Road in Delacombe, from Sutton Street to Wiltshire Lane, Windsor Avenue in Alfredton, from Sturt Street to Elaine Avenue, York Street in Ballarat East, along various locations, Rattray Court in Canadian and Raglan Street in Miners Rest, from Howe Street to Kennedy Street.
The council is in the early stages of preparing its Footpath Strategy, and is looking for feedback from the community.
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