Emine Saner’s excellent article (Britain’s pavement hell: how messy, broken streets ruin people’s lives, 11 January) omits one of the worst types of hazardous clutter on pavements: fallen leaves from trees on yards or other properties that adjoin them. In Cambridge, the fallen leaves are left for months, where they become piles of slippery mush. I slipped on just such a pile of rotting leaves a few months ago, and my left clavicle is still tender from the impact of falling on to concrete.
Combined with sundry other obstacles, the treacherous piles and trails of fallen leaves make the endeavour of walking on Britain’s pavements far more dangerous than it should be.
Prof Matthew Kramer
Cambridge
• I agree with your article. I am a visually impaired guide dog owner, and our outings often resemble a slalom course. As you say, it seems up to individuals to put pressure on councils to improve problematic areas; I successfully forced our local council to clear a huge bramble bush obstructing the pavement. Don’t even get me started on pavement parking.
Lilian Wickstead
Wigan, Greater Manchester
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