The Struggle with Where the Sidewalks Won't Go

Re:The Struggle with Where the Sidewalks Won't Go by dsfyu404ed on Wednesday September 20, 2017 @11:18AM (#15294685)

I'd take wide shoulders over sidewalks any day. Wide shoulders increase safety for many more people. People on bikes can use them. Pedestrians can walk on them. People pushing strollers can use them. You can change a tire on them. Drivers can use them to navigate obstructions (like people who cannot promptly take a left turn). Drivers can pull over and re-tie down a tarp that's too loose or change a tire. Snow plows can easily clean them. They're cheaper (than dedicated sidewalks) to build and maintain and don't need curb cuts.

Using banked curbs everywhere is another more useful alternative to normal sidewalks (less useful to some pedestrians but create a larger perceived separation from traffic than a shoulder and impossible to kill a tire while parallel parking)

Edit: At least offer up a counter opinion if you're gonna down-vote.

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Re:The Struggle with Where the Sidewalks Won't Go by willitpamp573 on Wednesday September 20, 2017 @05:05PM (#15298241)

Just a wild guess here, you only ever drive right?

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Re:The Struggle with Where the Sidewalks Won't Go by dsfyu404ed on Thursday September 21, 2017 @02:07PM (#15305997)

I take public transit and walk about a mile to work. I bike when I just need to go on a small errand. I drive a fair amount for other stuff.

Sidewalks work in cities where traffic (vehicle and pedestrian) is always high and areas where you have massive amounts of space for them (mostly places built up after WW2). For areas where sidewalks are not practical a wide shoulder is almost as good IMO. Obviously it depends on the nature of the road as well.

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Re:The Struggle with Where the Sidewalks Won't Go by willitpamp573 on Sunday October 01, 2017 @03:13PM (#15379309)

I respect that you have that opinion knowing that you don't exclusively drive.

Personally I bike and walk exclusively (do not own a car) and would much prefer separated cycling/walking paths. I get that there is a cost associated with this, but I think the cost is comparatively low to that of even marginal improvements to highway infrastructure.

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