Mayo County Council Road Safety Office Calls On The Public To Be Mindful This Make Way Day

Date: 26-09-2024

Tomorrow Friday, September 27th, marks Make Way Day 2024, a national campaign raising awareness about the challenges faced by people with disabilities due to blocked walkways and public spaces.

Mayo County Council’s Road Safety Office are calling on all road users to increase their awareness of these challenges and to work together to make the streets of the county more inclusive, safe and accessible for all.

Road Safety Officer with Mayo County Council, Frances Mitchell said: “Here in Mayo County Council we are committed to making our public streets as accessible and user friendly for all members of our community, regardless of their abilities.

‘Make Way Day serves as a crucial reminder that what you may see as minor obstruction on a footpath can be a serious barrier or difficulty for other people, such as those in wheelchairs, using walkers or the visually impaired members of our community.

‘While Make Way Day offers us a timely reminder each year, it is crucial that we all continue to be aware and make changes in our practices on a daily basis so that everyone can use our footpaths with ease day in day out.”

Some of the most common issues that affect people with disabilities include cars parked on footpaths, bicycles illegally parked, bins left out on footpaths.  While most often these issues are unintentional oversights by individuals, Make Way Day aims to encourage everyone to think about their actions and how they can effect other people using the shared spaces in the county. 

Make Way Day is led by the Disability Federation of Ireland and is a collaboration across Ireland and the voluntary and local government sectors.