The experience has become a handy metaphor for how people are lured into paying for things that will never get used. Like a gym membership or a fondue set. (For those of you who are familiar with the church world, "small group ministry" also fits under this heading: people join churches in the hopes of making deep friendships around significant activities like studying the Bible or serving others. Then they realize that their lives are over committed, they can't make all the meetings, and never see these folks more than once a month. Their small group becomes one more set of shallow relationships which they go to out of guilt for a while and then drift out of. This is my field of reference, and I'll talk about it more when I talk about the social aspects of a walkable community.)
Sidewalks in new neighborhoods are the external counterpart to jacuzzi tubs. You picture yourself taking walks with your kids, your dog, your friends. You really enjoy walking, and you need to get some pounds off. It fits the "green" lifestyle you read about in magazines. When you get settled, however, you realize you don't have the time for a casual stroll. Besides, it's lonely; nobody else's schedule seems to match yours, so you walk by yourself with your ipod a few times. But the lack of trees makes you feel exposed to the traffic, and you feel like everybody's looking at you. You go a few times, and then peter out.
So I suggest that urban planners, zoning directors, developers, and home buyers take this approach: enable people to get to places they need to go. Assume that people do not have an extra hour in the week, let alone the day, to walk a loop. Instead, imagine them making a decision about how to do their errands: will they have a choice about whether to walk, bike, drive, or be driven? In my neighborhood, I can walk to get an ice cream cone, a haircut, a mexican meal, or pizza. I can also walk to Walmart and a pet supply store. With a little planning, I can make time to walk to these places, since I get exercise, save the planet, save money, and complete my errand at the same time. When exercise is the only benefit to walking, I find it rarely makes it into my actual day. It remains an ideal, gathering dust like my tub.
Sidewalks in new neighborhoods are the external counterpart to jacuzzi tubs. You picture yourself taking walks with your kids, your dog, your friends. You really enjoy walking, and you need to get some pounds off. It fits the "green" lifestyle you read about in magazines. When you get settled, however, you realize you don't have the time for a casual stroll. Besides, it's lonely; nobody else's schedule seems to match yours, so you walk by yourself with your ipod a few times. But the lack of trees makes you feel exposed to the traffic, and you feel like everybody's looking at you. You go a few times, and then peter out.
So I suggest that urban planners, zoning directors, developers, and home buyers take this approach: enable people to get to places they need to go. Assume that people do not have an extra hour in the week, let alone the day, to walk a loop. Instead, imagine them making a decision about how to do their errands: will they have a choice about whether to walk, bike, drive, or be driven? In my neighborhood, I can walk to get an ice cream cone, a haircut, a mexican meal, or pizza. I can also walk to Walmart and a pet supply store. With a little planning, I can make time to walk to these places, since I get exercise, save the planet, save money, and complete my errand at the same time. When exercise is the only benefit to walking, I find it rarely makes it into my actual day. It remains an ideal, gathering dust like my tub.
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