I'M backing an appeal by a safety campaigner calling for the speed merchants using disabled scooters to slow down.

It was coincidence that just a couple of days after I was almost taken out by a woman zooming along Railway Road at a fair rate of knots that straight-talking Access Committee member Frank Parkinson, of Tyldesley, called about the same thing.

Frank, who is totally blind, and his wife Pat have worked hard to make life easier for disabled people in the borough, but feel some scooter users are taking a liberty.

Some, like my woman, are driving too fast along pavements, others are travelling the wrong way along busy roads, though many machines are not designed for use on the roads, and even transporting children on the front of them.

Frank acknowledges disabled people have a tough enough time but these abusers should know better.

He is calling on all scooterists to keep their speed setting on the lowest level while about town for safety's sake. I'll second that.