 Today's Picture: In Louisville, Ky, we rank seventh in a list of the most dangerous cities in a recent study by Transportation for America. You don't need to look very far to find evidence that ours can be a toxic environment for pedestrians.
"Dangerous By Design" asks how the most prosperous nation on earth could allow 76,000 Americans to be killed while crossing or walking along city streets in the past 15 years. It's like a jumbo jet falling from the sky every month, the report says.
In my car-free experiment I've had more than a few occasions lately to see firsthand the pedestrian danger. For example, early one weekday morning about a month ago I took a TARC ride to Oxmoor to meet business associates carpooling to Cincinnati. I got off the bus to find no crosswalk, no sidewalk, and a traffic signal that gave me mere seconds to cross an incredibly wide Shelbyville Rd. intersection. I wondered how physically challenged pedestrians could possibly cross before being mowed down.
And walking my dog at dusk recently, I tripped on one of the many broken sidewalks in my neighborhood. The break in the pavement had clearly been a problem for years, but Metro officials and the homeowner apparently hadn't agreed on responsibility for pouring a new section of concrete. No big deal, you might say. But I tripped on a similar sidewalk break several years ago and sustained an injury that left my hand disfigured, even after three surgeries.
Now, Walk This Way
My daughter lives in Minneapolis, named in the Americans for Transportation study as the safest city for pedestrians. No surprise that Minneapolis is also an extremely bike friendly city, too – in spite of their much bigger challenge with ice and snow up there, eh?
They've got it all going on: a  fantastic bus and rail system, a network of bikeways, bike lanes, bike routes, and recreational paths around scenic lakes. Motorists seem more patient or less aggressive – I couldn't say which.
Maybe a delegation from Louisville should go up to Minneapolis and take a close look at how motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists can get along and play nice. I was impressed that Minneapolis sends the message loud and clear that bikes are not welcome on their sidewalks. But I also noticed that they spend adequate funds on making it safe for cyclists to navigate their city streets.
PS: Remember, every lane is a bike lane. Share the road.
freewheelin
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Enjoy the ride home.
See you at pedalaround.blogspot.com
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bikecommuter