A 13mm (½ inch) height differential in a footpath manhole cover is not dangerous to a pedestrian exercising ordinary care and does not give rise to liability in negligence. The duty of a highway authority to pedestrians is to take reasonable care to prevent or eliminate dangers, not to ensure safety or eliminate all obvious hazards that could possibly occasion harm. The care pedestrians must take for their own safety enters into the definition of the duty, not merely contributory negligence. A highway authority has no duty to inspect disused artificial structures in footpaths absent circumstances triggering such an obligation.
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