The Ghantous principle that a council's duty of care to pedestrians is formulated by reference to users exercising reasonable care for their own safety applies equally to cycleways used by joggers, roller-bladers and cyclists, and is not confined to suburban footpaths used by walkers. A council is entitled to expect that users of a cycleway will exercise sufficient care by looking where they are going and avoiding obvious hazards such as an uneven surface at the edge. Mere foreseeability of an accident is insufficient to establish breach. Expert evidence on lighting and construction standards is of limited relevance where the central question is whether the pedestrian took reasonable care.
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