Call to ensure all shops on Llandaff High Street have disabled access
A WHEELCHAIR user has called for all stores on Llandaff High Street to have a ramped entrance.
The High Street is sloped so many stores, including the pharmacy and the Post Office, have stepped access, while the Spar and patisserie, La Creme, are among those with slopes which make it easier for wheelchairs to get in.
The call for universal wheelchair access comes from Liam Ware, 21, who lives in Llandaff and whose nearest shops are on the High Street. He suffers from chronic pain and got an electric wheelchair at the beginning of this year.
He said: “I was so excited to be able to get my life back, only to discover a week later as I went to the pharmacy to get my medication that there was no way I could get inside.
“I brought it up with the manager of the pharmacy – after several minutes without being noticed a man had to offer to go in and get attention for me – and she insisted there was nothing they could do.
“Shopkeepers at the pharmacy and Post Office have told me that they have tried to get portable ramps but the council said that it would be a safety risk.”
The angled pavement means any ramps would have to go to the kerbstone, and could be a trip hazard.
The store front of the pharmacy was refurbished in 2019 and originally included plans for level access when the door was moved to the right hand side but there is a slight step into the pharmacy due to the slope of the pavement.
Mr Ware said: “Something has been seriously overlooked here.”
Councillor Sean Driscoll, who represents Llandaff and Danescourt, said: “I do sympathise with wheelchair users in the community because access to shops should be available to all customers.
“I have made representations about this to the council’s equality officer, who I feel sure will work with our highways team and I to find a solution to improve access to the shops.”
Eleri, who works at La Creme Patisserie, said: “We are relatively new to Llandaff and the ramp was already built into our store. We feel that everyone should have access.”
Mr Ware said: “I am very grateful for this alternative action, though I know this is not an option for most shops as the layout has already been built.”
In 2012 the High Street was resurfaced as part of a regeneration scheme. The work aimed to make the street more accessible with wider pavements and dropped kerbs.
However, in 2020 Cardiff Council’s Llandaff Conservation Area Appraisal stated that: “access for people with mobility difficulties is generally poor because streets are generally narrow and have unsuitable surface treatments.”
Mr Ware suffers from fatigue because of his disability.
He said: “A lot of the time I only have the energy for small trips out and about. I fear it’s more the areas on the outskirts that are suffering – if they are not directly next to the castle, they apparently don’t seem to matter to the council as much.
“Disabled people are so often overlooked and ignored in society. It is as though people assume we do not go out or have social lives.”
Coun Driscoll said: “As a former shopkeeper myself I understand the difficulties traders face, especially on a sloping road like Llandaff High Street.
“However every effort must be made to ensure that there are access facilities available to all customers.”
He added: “I am also concerned about disabled access in Llandaff more broadly. The proposed Waungron Road Bus Interchange completely discriminates against the disabled and infirm. It has a steep slope which an unassisted wheelchair user has great difficulty using.
“With a new bus interchange proposed, my view is this should be addressed at the planning stage, not an afterthought to be sorted sometime later.”
