Business calls for safety action after woman is hit by delivery e-bike in major Northampton street

A business in a busy Northampton town centre street is calling on the authorities to stop electric vehicles riding on the pavement ‘before someone is seriously inured’.

Bridge Street has been closed to all traffic since August 23 following a massive fire at the former Fat Cats Cafe and Balloon Bar building.

Scaffolding and fencing will continue to surround the area of the building until it is demolished because it is not structurally safe – however it is not yet known when demolition will take place.

Because of the road closure, electric vehicles are using the pavement as a time-saving cut through into the town centre instead of following the diversion in place, which takes an extra five to 10 minutes depending on the traffic.

Nick Pattison, an estate agent at Jackson Stops, in Bridge Street, is calling for West Northants Council (WNC) and Northants Police to make the area safer after one of his clients was hit by a passing delivery e-bike.

Mr Pattison said: “I had a client who came to visit me in the office and when she left, she was hit by a passing food delivery e-bike using the pavement because the road was closed. They were going at about 15 – 20mph.

"My client came back into the office and was dazed but not injured. The rider carried on. This was reported to the police who were not interested, saying it was a “road traffic incident”. I reported this to the road traffic department and they said because no one was injured, they cannot look into it.

"So it seems the police are not interested in mopeds, scooters, Voi scooter, electric bikes using the pavement at speeds up to 20mph UNTIL someone is seriously injured.

“The council could quite easily move the barriers three feet from the pavement allowing these mopeds to use the road instead of the footpath but they show no interest.

“Sitting outside Bridge Street for just 30 minutes will show what the issue is.

"No one’s come back from me at the council or the police. It’s getting worse.

“I hope I don’t have to tell you when someone is seriously injured for something to be done."

This newspaper took Mr Pattison’s concerns to WNC and the police.

A WNC spokeswoman said: “Riding on pavements is strictly prohibited for cycles, e-cycles, mopeds, and e-scooters. There are offences and penalties for using an e-scooter illegally.

"Barriers are in place to prevent vehicle access to Bridge Street in order to keep members of the public safe.

"Misuse of e-scooters being ridden on the path can be reported to the council via [email protected] for us to investigate. Or direct to VOI at either report.voi.com or [email protected].”

A Northants Police spokeswoman said: “Our Safer Roads Team will speak to WNC to see what measures can be put in place to make this area safer for pedestrians and riders while the work is being carried out.”