More than 160 penalties this year for ‘pavement surfing’

The issue was raised in the States meeting last week, when Deputy Andy Cameron referred to a ‘shocking’ video on social media of a pedestrian attempting to walk to Hautes Capelles Primary School while sharing the footpath with large volumes of traffic.

Steff Cooper walks to the school to pick up her five-year-old daughter Scarlet while pushing her five-month-old daughter, Tilly, in the pram.

‘We just try to get down the road as quick as possible,’ she said yesterday.

‘I walk as fast as I can. In the morning we leave early to avoid all the traffic.’

Morgan Dodsworth walks the same route each day to pick up her five-year-old son Mason.

‘You haven’t got a choice but to drive on the pavement. It’s such a skinny road to say it’s a school road,’ she said.

St Sampson’s constable Leonie Le Tissier said she thought that Route des Capelles was one of the worst roads in the parish for it.

‘I see it for myself, it is an issue. Unfortunately I don’t think there is anything we can do, it is down to the police who hopefully will continue to monitor the situation,’ she said.

She said that painted line pavements – those which are not raised from the road – increased the likelihood of pavement surfing, particularly on Les Sauvagees, which children often walk through to get to and from school.

‘Drivers are just ignoring the fact that there is a pavement there.’

Home Affairs president Rob Prow assured that police were aware of the problem and were responding to it as best they can.

‘The message I would like to give out is that it is an offence to drive on the footpath unless it is done to pass another vehicle. Continuing to drive on the footpath for longer than necessary is an aggravating factor in this offence, that is the position, and the police will

take action,’ said Deputy Prow.

Guernsey Police released a short video on Facebook back in November showing Sergeant Andy Smith at Bailiff’s Cross junction, where there have

been reports of pavement surfing.

He said police knew motorists would have to mount the pavement to let other vehicles pass on some of the island’s narrow roads, but drivers should be stopping or at least slowing their speed when doing so.

Motorists caught driving on the footpath usually receive a fixed penalty notice, but there have been some cases where drivers have been taken to court.