Opinion: Peterborough city centre streets branded 'disgrace thanks to bird mess', writes PT reader

The mess made by pigeons in Bridge Street, Peterborough.

‘City pigeons are disgrace’, writes Trudy May in this week’s Peterborough Telegraph letters page.

I feel I must contact you regarding the disgusting, unhealthy streets of Peterborough, in particular the town centre. I walked in town from Bridge Street and I was absolutely horrified at the disgusting state of the streets.

It’s absolutely disgusting that this can be left for people to walk into.

Bird poo is being walked on then in and out of the shops and up and down the streets. This can cause serious diseases, such as Salmonella, Cryptococcus, Psittacosis and Histoplasmosis. These are very harmful to humans when breathed in.

Do Peterborough Environmental Health Team really want to be responsible to harming its citizens’ health?

The pigeons need culling as they have got completely out of hand and our streets seriously need disinfection.

In the town I use to live in, they hired a man with hawks to visit the town regularly to scare them away, but I fear this may need a more heavier approach.

Towns are dying and high streets too, but please do not put our health at risk also. I hope you can let the EHT at the council see the disgusting state of the streets of Peterborough.

I would not recommend any visitor to our beautiful town as I would be too embarrassed in its current state.

Trudy May