{"id":2614,"date":"2020-12-19T17:14:31","date_gmt":"2020-12-19T22:14:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?p=2614"},"modified":"2020-12-19T17:23:52","modified_gmt":"2020-12-19T22:23:52","slug":"do-our-part","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/2bgreener.com\/?p=2614","title":{"rendered":"Do Our Part…"},"content":{"rendered":"

I try to walk 5-6 days a week. Some days it\u2019s a quick walk to the park and back, about 3.6 miles. Other days it\u2019s a trek of 7 miles or more. I am very lucky to be healthy and to live in walkable community. <\/span><\/p>\n

Well, it\u2019s not walkable all the time\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

The third biggest snowstorm in Albany\u2019s history occurred a few days ago. Just under two feet of snow in about 16 hours. Luckily it was a light, fluffy snow, and most people seemed to have handled it pretty well. But my 5-mile walk today revealed so much that we still must learn and certainly can improve. It comes down to everyone doing their part. And, more importantly, doing their part to support a system that their neighbors and community depend upon.<\/span><\/p>\n

My wishes for 2021 and our shared future, as revealed by my snowy walk, are listed below. It may be that there are individuals out there already doing some of this, and I salute you and thank you. It may be that there are cities successful in creating and maintaining their sidewalks and transit systems so that people can move around well all year round. I encourage your to share your favorite walkable city in a comment on this post. This way we can all learn and then visit inspiring cities. There is nothing better for the health and well-being of people or the vibrancy of the local economy than a walkable city. <\/span><\/p>\n

First, we need to make sure that we are not literally burying each other\u2019s work.<\/strong> People clearing sidewalks must pay attention to already cleared off cars, and people clearing their cars have to avoid dumping snow onto freshly cleared sidewalks! I experienced this twice over the last few days. It is sad to see someone who had just finished clearing their corner-lot sidewalk (that\u2019s a lot of shoveling, BTW) come back around the corner to see a car pulling away from the curb and their sidewalk all blocked again with snow. It\u2019s not even as if anyone is asking you to do more than you need to. Just do what you need to with some respect.<\/strong><\/em> It takes some awareness and a little thought. <\/span><\/p>\n

And please, do more than you need to if you can. I saw a small crew, today, with half a dozen shovels and two snow throwers walking around their part of town and helping to clear stairs and sidewalks. Lovely. I also talked to a guy who cleared several crosswalks across the center island on his street. He said \u201cEh, I have a snow thrower so it was easy.\u201d It is, you know. It is easy to be a good neighbor. Do what you can when you can.<\/span><\/p>\n

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How can we get walkable cities, year-round, when cars are deemed more important than people?<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Second, cities need to approach plowing with multi-modal success in mind.<\/strong> It may be that Albany just hasn\u2019t gotten to these parts of the plan, yet. And I say that\u2019s not good enough. Until people are <\/strong><\/em><\/span>at least as<\/span> important as cars, our cities cannot possibly be considered sustainable.<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

We need more awareness in our snow management planning: <\/span><\/p>\n