Where The Sidewalk Ends...

Faulty Planning Inhibits Community and Movement.

A couple of years ago, I finally overcame my suburban fear. I hopped on my bike, and drove to the closest supermarket. My heart was beating fast as car after car closely raced by at high speed. When I finally reached my destination, there was no place to park my bike. I leaned it against a wall, locked it, and grabbed my shopping basket. “Where are you from?” a curious shopper asked. In my neighborhood, nobody goes shopping with a bike.

A similar thing happened when, on a snowy day, I decided to walk to my dentist’s office, which is only a five minute car ride away from my house. As I tried to cross a major road in front of the dentist's office, I feared for my life. I finally made it to the center island, where a driver honked and gave me an angry look. When I told the receptionist that I had just walked from home, she told me that I was “crazy.”

Car is king in America. I should know that, we’re not in Europe anymore!

I always marvel at the broad residential streets in American neighborhoods. There would be plenty of space to build bike lanes or sidewalks. According to the latest statistics, in 2021, an average of 20 pedestrians per day were killed on American roads. Most of these fatalities occur on roads with no sidewalks.

Taking into consideration the high obesity rate in America, by building more sidewalks, more people would be physically active and walk. The lack of sidewalks is holding people back.

There is also a communal aspect to sidewalks. As we all experienced social isolation during the recent COVID outbreak, driving your car from your driveway to your destination, there is no interaction with other human beings. By walking on a sidewalk, you might encounter a dog walker, a neighbor, a mom with a baby stroller, or children. My 91-year-old mother in Switzerland enjoys her by-weekly walk to a little grocery store in town. Sometimes she encounters another villager for a chat, watches grazing cows, or peeks into a neighbor’s vegetable garden. Sidewalks connect people.

How come Americans have less access to sidewalks? To quote Dror Poleg, a writer, speaker, and teacher, who focuses on the future of work, finance, and cities, “Most American suburbs were built in the second half of the 20th Century, when many people moved out of urban cores in search of safer and, often, whiter communities. Migration patterns, as well as explicit policy, resulted in suburbs that are indeed very safe and very white. Many Americans saw (and see) sidewalks as a threat to this arrangement.” Sadly, homeowners were afraid that sidewalks would bring people who do not “belong” to their neighborhood into the community.

In my area, communities for people 55 and older shoot like mushrooms out of the ground. Many of these new developments are proud of their attractive houses and well-cared lawns. Unfortunately, these older homeowners can’t walk outside of their gated communities because they lack sidewalks. In research for this newsletter, I checked out two new developments in my neighborhood: both communities built short sidewalks outside the entrance gate, but those sidewalks lead to nowhere and end after approximately 300 feet. No connection to the town, no walking to the local library, cafe, park, train station, or drugstore. These homeowners need to use their cars to reach a destination. So much for freedom for seniors living in these high-priced homes. Don’t the planners and architects understand?

Why did the chicken cross the road? Because there was no footbridge or pedestrian underpass. To cross busy roadways, pedestrian footbridges and well-designed crosswalks are also needed.

On a positive note, young homebuyers desire more and more homes in a walkable community. Some real estate websites (zillow.com) already list a walk score next to school ratings and tax history. Walkable, somewhat walkable, or car-dependent ratings can influence the price of a home.

Lucky me, two of my children and their families chose a home in a walkable community with sidewalks. It makes it enjoyable for this grandma to take my grandkids for a stroll or walk to a local coffee shop. The American dream!

“Those who don’t move don’t notice their chains.” -Rosa Luxemburg