I too live in a cul-de-sac (for cars), but we have a very well-used footpath at the far end. This is very convenient for us, and, more importantly, it produces few of the horrors which IWereAbsolutely Fuming is worried about. The street is quiet and friendly and there is little if any anti-social behaviour (touch wood). Admittedly, very young children are rarely allowed to play in the street unsupervised, but older kids kick a ball around sometimes which doesn't seem to bother anyone.

In my view there are advantages in terms of security in having the footpath at the end of the road. It means there are more people around, day and night, which I'm sure is a deterrent to vandalism, anti-social behaviour, street crime and opportunistic burglaries.