WAR veteran Gary Proellocks was almost sideswiped by a car on his mobility scooter just months after Living Gems Toowoomba residents complained to council about the dangers of no footpaths.
Mr Proellocks has been confidently driving his mobility scooter for more than a decade after he suffered a serious stroke 16 years ago which affected the right side of his body.
He drives from his Living Gems residence along Greenwattle Street to Coles a few times a week.
After the nerve-wracking near-miss in October, Mr Proellocks has been driving his scooter in the bicycle lane alongside oncoming traffic.
Member for Toowoomba South David Janetzki MP is appalled Mr Proellocks is forced to court danger multiple times a week just to get his groceries.
“Mr Proellocks spent 30 years of his life as a firefighter in Toowoomba and has seen first-hand the carnage on our roads,” Mr Janetzki said.
“Living Gem residents raised their concerns with council about the lack of safe footpaths months before this near-miss,” he said.
“It is shocking that it is less dangerous for him to drive his mobility scooter on the wrong side of the road.”
Toowoomba Gems Residents Association secretary Doug Searle has lobbied council on behalf of residents.
“The gaps between current footpaths are hazardous for walking because of the uneven ground and they are often overgrown by grass and weeds,” Mr Searle said.
"There has been substantial residential development in this area and the addition of the Ozcare Aged Care and the Coles supermarket increases the need for the completion of a continuous footpath,” he said.
Council responded to Mr Searle’s requests for a footpath extension along the western side of Greenwattle Street, between South Street and Glenvale Road.
TRC said the extension was unlikely to occur in the near future due to “limited budget” and volume of other project requests.
Mr Janetzki said the western and southern suburbs of Toowoomba would add 30,000 residents over the next 30 years, increasing residential congestion and demand.
“Growth of this significance requires more council amenities, including footpaths,” Mr Janetzki said.
"I will continue fighting to ensure that Glenvale gets their fair share of council and state government funding,” he said.