Rollators and cobblestones

[HJB]

Hello, my mum lives in an old cottage that has cobblestones in the front driveway. She finds it very difficult to walk over them with her rollator because she has Parkinson's and her balance is not good. We can't remove the cobblestones as the cottage is listed. Does anyone know of any products that help? I've seen a rubber matting that can be used on gravel or lawn but I don't know if this would be suitable for cobblestones, which are bigger. I'd be grateful to hear whether anyone knows of a good solution or any suggestions of who I could contact to ask? Thanks very much.

[beau]

Why don't you contact a supplier of the rubber matting to see if they could give you a free sample large enough for your mum to try.

[nukecad]

Would a rollator with bigger wheels help?

Is the driveway still to be used by vehicles?

A lot is going to depend on how big/uneven the cobbles are.

If you need to then you could put down a strip of sand or gravel to give an even surface 'bed' and then cover that with non-slip access matting.
You would probably need permission from the council/English Heritage if it's listed, but as it would all be removable and wouldn't damage the existing cobbles, you'd probably get it.

Maybe try contacting suppliers of matting for events to get their advice.
I'm thinking this sort of stuff, which may go straight on the cobbles without a bed of sand/gravel: https://www.groundtrax.com/pedestrian-walkways/

Here's another supplier of rubber matting: https://rubbermattinguk.co.uk/en/shop/
There are plenty of others, just google for 'event eatting'. (tip also try 'conveyor belt matting' you may find some second hand stuff cheap).

[HJB]

Why don't you contact a supplier of the rubber matting to see if they could give you a free sample large enough for your mum to try.

Great idea! Thanks so much for this suggestion.

[HJB]

Would a rollator with bigger wheels help?

Is the driveway still to be used by vehicles?

A lot is going to depend on how big/uneven the cobbles are.

If you need to then you could put down a strip of sand or gravel to give an even surface 'bed' and then cover that with non-slip access matting.
You would probably need permission from the council/English Heritage if it's listed, but as it would all be removable and wouldn't damage the existing cobbles, you'd probably get it.

Maybe try contacting suppliers of matting for events to get their advice.
I'm thinking this sort of stuff, which may go straight on the cobbles without a bed of sand/gravel: https://www.groundtrax.com/pedestrian-walkways/

Here's another supplier of rubber matting: https://rubbermattinguk.co.uk/en/shop/
There are plenty of others, just google for 'event eatting'. (tip also try 'conveyor belt matting' you may find some second hand stuff cheap).

Thanks so much for this. It's really helpful. Yes, the driveway is still used for vehicles when people visit. My mum's not keen to get bigger wheels because she thinks the rollator will be heavier plus it will be harder to fit into the car (I have a Nissan Micra!) when we go out. I agree that different tyres would help but I can only find rollators with thicker tyres and suspension on much more expensive models (and the tyres are bigger).

Thanks again.

[nukecad]

Of course that google should be 'matting' not 'eatting' - not sure how that happened?