We found this wonderful little library in Sutton Manor. It is the work of a Sutton Manor resident and is such a fabulous installation I had to return the following day to add a book.
A. To borrow a book from the library.
We found this wonderful little library in Sutton Manor. It is the work of a Sutton Manor resident and is such a fabulous installation I had to return the following day to add a book.
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We went out for one of our New Rochelle walks today to knock a few more streets off of our list and to use up a few more Thanksgiving calories.
We were in a quiet neighborhood with no sidewalks, an unfortunately common occurrence. We generally face the traffic but as we'd just turned around at the end of a small quiet street (one of those streets that get walked both ways to avoid missing a block or two) we were not being vigilant about where we were on the street. An SUV came around the corner and the driver honked at us. Not a loud, long drawn out offensive honk. It was more a "guys, watch out, I'm behind you" honk. It made us both jump but it was understandable and, in its own way, helpful. What wasn't so helpful was the driver opening his passenger side window to lecture us. His opening remark was addressed to my husband "Sir, you were walking in the middle of the road". He wasn't. He was no further out in the road than the width of a parked car but I guess from a driver's perspective that's a lot of space between the pedestrian and the curb. My husband responded that the honking had startled us. The driver helpfully replied that he could have run us over instead. At that point his passenger also chipped it, I guess she felt we didn't understand the severity of what we had done - taking up space on a public roadway, endangering ourselves and potentially causing a lot of trouble to her and the driver if he had run us over. When it became clear that we were not going to pay any more attention to the ongoing lecture, the driver finally sped up after telling us that "in this country, we keep to the right". This closing comment bothered me for two reasons. Firstly any experienced pedestrian will tell you that given adequate visibility a pedestrian should face the traffic, which "in this country" means walking on the left. And secondly, why is it always white men with American accents who use the term "in this country"? Do they think they are the only ones who know how things should be done? And that there is only one way (their way) to do something right in this huge and wonderfully diverse country? When situations like this occur I never think of a response until too late but when I did finally get over my surprise (and distaste) for being lectured at by someone driving alongside me in their car, I wished I had said that if he wanted to be of service he could lobby for sidewalks. That of course occurred to me after thinking of a number of sarcastic rejoinders but it is the one I hope I remember if we get lectured at again for taking up space on a public roadway. Yes, from a safety perspective we were not paying good attention, but a lecture? Any ideas of what else we could have said? Or were we so clearly at fault we deserved the lecture? "If you ask, I will tell you that I have embarked on this project, which I’m calling the Out of Eden Walk, for many reasons: to relearn the contours of our planet at the human pace of three miles an hour. To slow down. To think. To write. To render current events as a form of pilgrimage. I hope to repair certain important connections burned through by artificial speed, by inattentiveness. I walk, as everyone does, to see what lies ahead. I walk to remember." Paul Salopek - Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and National Geographic Fellow.
Paul Salopek is retracing on foot the global migration of our ancestors in a 21,000-mile, seven-year odyssey that begins in Ethiopia and ends in Tierra del Fuego. So I'm strolling around 175 miles of New Rochelle and here is someone a year into a 7 year 21,000 mile walk! What an amazing odyssey! Thanks to Gordon Price of Price Tags for the link. A plea for signage for pedestrians not just drivers. In walking around New Rochelle I have become increasingly aware of street signage and it's perpetual focus on drivers over pedestrians. Traffic signs do not tell a universal truth, they tell a truth that applies to drivers. Dead End, No Outlet signs are often placed where there is a way through for pedestrians. Sometimes it is so obvious that it doesn't matter like the Dead End sign below - note the sidewalk that runs all the way to the car park.... ....but in some locations the signs can be misleading. The two below came one after the other and gave no indication of what a pedestrian could expect further along the road. The 'No Outlet' does not rule out an "In Let' but I have found the use of 'Dead End" and 'No Outlet' to be inconsistent so some additional information would be helpful. Ignoring the 'Do Not Enter' and the 'No Outlet' brought me out to a main road along a fully paved piece of sidewalk. Would it be too much to ask that we have some pedestrian access signs in the places that it is not obvious? And speaking of obvious, why are there so many 'Dead End' signs in places so obvious they can only be considered redundant? Wayfinding, as distinct from traffic signs, are happily often designed for pedestrians and can include not just directional help but distance in feet, time or number of steps. I'm looking forward to New Rochelle making strides (sorry couldn't resist) on improving its Wayfinding and while these signs are often put in place for visitors I maintain that locals need them too. Particularly, as said earlier, if we want to encourage people to get out of their cars and walk then it is important that they know how to get around easily and where there are shortcuts. Pedestrians have a great advantage over drivers when it comes to cut throughs including through buildings, alleyways, walkways, and informal cut throughs where pedestrians have created their own unofficial walkways aka desire lines.
And finally, a plea for clear signage. Here's an excerpt from Artists Walking Home in Vancouver that shows how planner enthusiasm can lead to confusion. Signs found in a small area: "Public Pay Parking Yield Motorcycle Parking U-Turn Parking Zone, 3 Minute Limit No U-Turn No Parking One Way Traffic Only No Stopping Roundabout Passenger Zone, No Stopping Pedestrian Crossing Fire Lane, No Parking Anywhere Press Button to Cross No Stopping, Except Modo Coop Stop, Watch for Pedestrians Loading Zone, Violators Towed Away Caution, Car Crossing Idle Free City, Turn Engine Off No Pedestrian Traffic Taxis Only" |
Author: Nina ArronI am an enthusiastic pedestrian, urban planner, and project manager currently living in New Rochelle, New York. I am grateful to be living in a walkable city with affordable easily accessible public transport (both trains and buses). My appreciation became even greater after spending three years back in New Zealand where it was much harder to fit daily walking into my life in what is considered one of the great natural, green environments in the world. Archives
February 2019
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