Mariana Swart, Glencairn Heights
Recently a young teenager started using his skateboard to skate down Camilla Road, and then down Birkenhead to the shops.
He comes whizzing down Camilla, slows down where Camilla makes a sharp right, then continues whizzing down, right across the stop street into Birkenhead. He slows down just before he comes to the entrance to the shopping complex.
I should add that he sits on his skateboard, which will make it extremely difficult for a motorist to spot him coming.
We have lived in Glencairn Heights for 11 years, and I know that few motorists actually stop at the four-way stop, especially when turning left. We also regularly spot cars that continue straight (or turn right) across the intersection without stopping. But even cars that have stopped, and have proceeded into the intersection legally, will find it difficult seeing this boy and avoiding a collision.
In addition, should the skateboarder ever decide to go left around the corner into Clan Stewart at speed, residents who reverse out of their driveways will not be able to see him in their rear-view mirrors.
While I understand that this must be exciting and fun for this boy, it is a recipe for disaster and an accident waiting to happen. If his parents, or anyone who knows him, reads this, please speak to him and urge him to find a safer place to skateboard, or at least to stop at the corner of Camilla and Clan Stewart and carry his skateboard across.
He should also never skate in a sitting position on a public road. My intention is not to spoil his fun and enjoyment of life, but instead I would like him to continue a long and happy existence. No parent wants to lose his child in an avoidable accident, and no motorist wants to carry the guilt of having accidentally killed or severely injured a child.
