WITNEY'S uneven paths will continue to cause injury if they are not fixed residents have said.

A 68-year-old woman who broke her arm after falling in the town in 2015 has led calls to do something about Witney's paving slabs after nearly injuring herself again in a fall last month.

Oxfordshire County Council, the authority responsible for pavements, said it conducts regular inspections of pavements in the town, and will repair the slab which caused the accident in January in the next two weeks.

Dorothy Holloway, of Wenrisc Drive, Minster Lovell, goes into Witney about two times a week. Shortly after Christmas in 2015, she was walking in Market Square when her mobility walker snagged on a paving slab causing her to fall and break her arm.

At the end of January this year, while walking near the entrance to The Woolgate Centre, in Market Square, Mrs Holloway tripped again after catching her walker, but was caught and helped by a passing couple.

She said: "The pavements in Witney are lethal. This is a potential hazard to a lot of people.

"I appreciate that councils are short of money but if something isn’t done about these slabs somebody will be really badly hurt.

“It's not just me. A lot of people in Witney use mobility walkers and I've heard a lot of people mention the state of the pavements. Another thing that concerns me is babies in buggies. I was fortunately saved from my tumble in January - I thought I was going to get another broken arm."

Mrs Holloway, who reported the raised slab to the county council, said the problem is not limited to Market Square.

She continued: "The council told me in order for raised slabs to be fixed it needs to be as deep as a 20p piece. Well you could bury a 20p piece where I fell.

"When are these dreadful pavements going to be fixed?"

The 68-year-old former nurse is not the only resident to take issue with the condition of Witney's pavements.

Susan Partridge, 85, of Cassington, said: "I think they should keep a more regular eye on pavements like this. All it takes when you're walking along is to drop a toe a little bit and the next thing you know you're flat on your face.

"I walk with two sticks now, which has helped me become more stable. Though I'm frequently bumping into people because I walk around with my head down looking for a raised slab."

Partially blind ecologist, Gavin Hageman, of Crawley Road, agreed that Witney's pavements were a problem - and said raised slabs may be caused by the roots of trees planted in the street.

He said: "You don't have to look too far to be able to find examples. There are some pretty bad ones and I've tripped and fell before myself.

"I believe it's caused by street trees, which creates a very difficult dilemma. If you look around Market Square there's a lot of green, which is nice and something that people like to see.

"It's down to the people that plant the trees and making sure they're the right species so the roots go down and don't grow horizontally.

"I empathise with people who trip on paving slabs but I also empathise with the authority that has to deal with it."

In October last year, Julie Partlett, 59, of Bridge Street, Witney, who was left with injuries to her leg and face after tripping on a raised slab.

Spokesman for Oxfordshire County Council Martin Crabtree said: "We carried out an inspection after the lady got in touch with us and we have ordered repairs, which we will be carried out in the next two weeks by our contractor.

"The area is inspected on foot every month and we will be carrying out an extra one later this week."