4 days ago
EXCLUSIVE Shoppers have called this Britain's most 'pointless' zebra crossing... but can YOU spot why?
Aldi shoppers have mercilessly mocked a bizarre zebra crossing at one of the chain's supermarkets, branding the pedestrian pathway 'pointless'.
The crossing at the branch on the Isle Of Sheppey, off the northern coast of Kent, runs straight into a curb and forces customers to walk into a lamppost.
It then leads shoppers onto a wood chip path flanked by bushes with no conventional footpath or pavement in sight.
Speaking to MailOnline, customers at the large superstore were less than impressed with the crossing and described the feature as a 'waste of space'.
Delcia Adams, 73, said: 'I don't think it's funny, I think it's absolutely stupid. It's a waste of money and space and I wouldn't be able to get up that side because I've got bad legs.'
Rob Killingbec, 48, added: 'Yeah, that's barmy. We said that from day one. And the other thing is as well, why is it a one-way system?
'They're making you come out as a disabled person, and then you've got to go out that way. You've got to go all the way around. It's weird.
'That's what I'm saying, it's barmy! That's England at its best. That's how we live our lives. It's mental.
'There you go, 'it is what it is!' [Points to his t-shirt] That is the saying, 'it is what it is!''
When MailOnline questioned staff inside the store on the odd piece of infrastructure, a member of staff dismissed shoppers' complaints claiming 'the crossing was fine and they'd never had any complaints'.
Other Aldi customers expressed safety concerns over the pathway which seems to have been at the site for almost a year.
Lesley Taylor, 70, said: 'Oh that's really helpful! That's ridiculous. That's putting it mildly.
'If I fell on that…especially in the dark. I'd lose it, I'd miss it. I'd trip straight over it.'
Vicky Luckhurst, meanwhile, added: 'Yeah, they said they were going to sort that out. But they haven't have they?
'I don't really walk that way normally, but I suppose, yeah, they did say they were going to sort it out though, but I take it they ain't then.'
Jenson Richardson said: 'It's ridiculous. I suppose it does go to the walkway. But still. It's mad.'
And Jim Crowber, 74, added: 'No one seems to take any notice of it. Just a pointless crossing!'
MailOnline has approached Aldi for comment.
It comes after frustrated locals living on the Isle of Man made their anger clear over an architectural oddity in their area.
Residents of the island said controversial painted oval-shaped roundabouts introduced as part of a £26million revamp to the Douglas seafront are 'a tragedy waiting to happen'.
The 'roundels' sit at junctions along Douglas Promenade connecting Broadway and Church Road Marina, two of the busiest junctions in the city, which is the largest settlement on the island.
Locals say that due to the lack of a central island, many drivers treat the curious junctions like any stretch of road and drive straight over the lines causing havoc.
Meanwhile pedestrians have also gotten into scrapes with the roundels stepping out into the road as they are unsure who has right of way.
A business owner close to one of the junctions told MailOnline the noise pollution and general sense of unease since they were installed has been noticeable.
They claimed: 'It's honking every day basically. People aren't sure what the rules are or if there are any rules at all and so they basically all fight each other to get through.
'Other more dangerous drivers just speed straight over them, it's a nightmare really -nobody around here can work out why they introduced them.
'They're a tragedy waiting to happen.'
Another local, who preferred to stay anonymous, said the eye-catching designs were indicative of the island trying to 'stand out at all costs'.
They said: 'It's pathetic really. Why can't we have normal roundabouts like the rest of the world?
'It seems we always have to be different on this island and that get's tiring after a while. We've already done away with cannabis laws and we're pushing through assisted dying.
'I suppose roundabouts was always going to be next. Let's make them deathtraps!'
In April, the Isle of Man became the first place in the British Isles to pass legislation that would permit assisted dying, despite opposition from campaigners.
Terminally ill people will be given 'autonomy and choice' at the end of their lives, a GP and politician said.
The Bill will now be put forward for royal assent, at which point it will become law.
It is the latest departure from the norm for the Crown dependency which has been described as 'the Isle of Woke' for its liberal policies.
The Isle is the only place in Britain where medicinal cannabis is legal and many roads on the island have no set speed limit.
Island officials have long claimed the roundels were introduced as a 'traffic calming' measure.
MailOnline approached the Isle of Man's Department of Infrastructure for comment.
