Falling on pavments/road in Ice?

almillar

Not to encourage claim culture, which I hate, but can someone please tell me which shoes to wear in ICE (not snow, slush) to prevent me from falling?! Ormeau Rd was lethal last year and approaching that a couple of days last week.
And the answer should be pretty simple (but maybe isn't) - DRD are responsible for the public highway, and in my book that includes pavements. They run the gritters - grit the pavement!

easy

I have a pair of moon boots, which are BRILLIANT (bear in mind I'm disabled, balance problems and joints that don't work properly). The moonboots have wide, cleated soft-ish rubbery soles, so unless the surface is absolutely oiled-glass smooth, they will find grip in any tiny ridge or crystals on the icy surface.

As I have an artificial hip, I need to be very carefult about slipping. Actually my moon boots give me much better grip than my son's dunlop wellies, and far better than dh's Hunters (which are great in mud, but too hard to grip on ice).

baza52

common sense will tell you that ice will be slippery.
What next? complaining cos you got wet as it was raining.

Lirin

I like the way it operates in Germany- it's up to the houseowner/ shopowner to ensure the path outside their premises is swept clear of snow.
Saying that, they enforce it with a fine/penalty system, our Government would sting with that too....

Golden_Anemone

My colleague who gets a bus to work every day has bought a pair of Yaktrax and they are brilliant. She can walk on even the iciest pavements without any insecurity at all.

blueberrypie

elsien wrote: »

How people manage in every other snow covered country in the world without cleared pavements, the lord only knows.

In most cities and towns in North America (including even small villages), if there's a footpath in front of your house, you are required to clear it. The local authority ploughs and grits the roads, but the footpaths are up to whoever is responsible for maintenance of the building itself - the owner/tenant, the shopkeeper, the management company for office and apartment blocks. The laws usually require the path to be cleared within a certain number of hours of a snowfall/ice. If you don't do it, the local authority does it for you - and bills you. Those who are not physically capable of doing it themselves (i.e. elderly or disabled - not just because you're out at work all day or otherwise busy) are able to register to have the local authority clear the path for them - this has been a free service in all the areas in which I've lived. People who find this difficult (e.g. because they work long hours or have very young children) often pay local teenagers to do it. Neighbours often work together, helping out each other and other families.

Both main roads and side-streets, including residential areas, are ploughed after a snowfall. There are also laws which require vehicles to be parked in driveways or other specified parking areas so that the snow-ploughs can clear the roads. If your car is left parked overnight on one of the roads this applies to, you can expect to return to find it has been buried in the snow, or towed away.

In other words, they are prepared for it and so they are able to get on with things. Most of the UK, on the other hand, seems to be completely astonished when the snow and ice arrive, even though it happens every year!

themull1

ooo000ooo wrote: »

on his !!!!?

Ha ha i asked for that.!!

armaghgirl

Slipped outside work and the only person that I will complain to is my family because my arm is really sore.

WhiteHorse

exup wrote: »

I poked myself in the eye with a pencil today - can I sue Stabler for not putting a cork on the end?

Ha, you jest.

A few years ago, there was a case in America (where else?), in which some fool managed to blow off several of his toes with a shotgun.

He sued on the grounds that the instructions did not say 'Do not point at foot and pull trigger'.

WhiteHorse

Golden_Anemone wrote: »

My colleague who gets a bus to work every day has bought a pair of Yaktrax and they are brilliant. She can walk on even the iciest pavements without any insecurity at all.

Rudd boot chains (they make snow chains for cars as well), are even better. Best of all (if you can find them), are Icetrekker boot chains.