Generous sidewalks

If the city is really serious about promoting pedestrian movement, there have to be decent and attractive sidewalks to move along. Providing feeble excuses for a sidewalk system; providing deteriorated, unpleasant concrete curb extensions, does not a sidewalk system make.

In the photo above, the sidewalk only appears to be sacrificed for a utility pole and driveway … but in reality, the squeeze was caused by adding in another lane on the adjacent street. The car lane does not get narrowed.

The above location is too narrow for the sidewalk plow in winter. It goes around, on the street, leaving a packed snow & ice ridge on each side of the pole. Fit pedestrians might be able to scramble up and down the ice banks, but what do people pushing strollers do? Or someone in a wheelchair?

Here’s another example. A bit of extra sidewalk has been installed to the left to make up for the obstruction. Who can fit between the newspaper boxes and the fire hydrant (err, sorry, street furniture)?

BUT, never worry, the City is actually proposing to do something to this bit of sidewalk. It is slated for reconstruction in the next two years. Will we see a better sidewalk? Well, actually we might not. Their current proposal is to widen the road by two feet and to reduce the sidewalk width according.

Oh, in case you haven’t guessed, this is on Bronson Avenue.

3 thoughts on “Generous sidewalks

  1. Hi,

    I don’t know if you’ve seen this (but imagine that you have). “The Bulldog” blog at the Citizen seems to have not understood the road diet (location or previous case examples available): http://communities.canada.com/ottawacitizen/blogs/bulldog/archive/2010/11/09/bronson-avenue-another-lansdowne-park.aspx

    Lots of people have already corrected the author.

    As a Centretowner, I am hoping to make the event tomorrow, but in the chance that I can’t I hope it is a success!

  2. I hate this kind of sidewalk diet. I used to have a fancy wide stroller, until it was stolen off my Preston Street porch in the winter, now my son sits on my shoulders. When I did have the stroller, this type of sidewalk encroachment always bugged me.
    I now work across the street from the Loblaws in that short stretch where Baseline and Merryvale run parallel. I wish I had a camera handy to send in pictures of their ‘side walk’ in the parking lot. YOu can not walk 10 feet on it without having to step on the street to get around traffic signs, and enmpty, but slightly raised planting boxes. The only indication that this is a side walk at all are the lines painted on the ground 🙁

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