BIG surprise. Fort Wayne is still focused on giving preference to the driver. HERE
A pedestrian expert recently said he is afraid to walk around Fort Wayne, Carpooling is almost unheard of, Citilink is under funded, and forget about trying to bicycle- unless you are looking to get run off the road.
Fort Wayne is focused on timed lights. Brilliant.
Maybe the city should take a look at how it views development. Our developments are unplanned and out of control. The city should STOP ALLOWING A STOP LIGHT AT EVERY LITTLE STRIP MALL OR NEW BUILDING. Look at Illinois Road - From 69 to Jefferson - there are 8 lights (if you count the new one for Target). How about Lima Road? We could eliminate the majority of those lights if Fort Wayne would look into Frontage/Access Roads.
What about the citizens?
To tell you the truth - I have only a little sympathy for drivers, due to the fact that people are not changing their habits. We are still driving alone, building new subdivisions, eating out excessively, amongst other lifestyles that create a heavy dependency on automobiles.
People are still building their homes in the vast reaches of Allen county and still complain about the daily commute. People knew what they were getting into when they purchased their home, Most people have a job before they buy a house, so it shouldn't be a surprise of how far the drive is going to be. The solution is to live more central to work, entertainment, and where you frequent.
The focus of the article is people waiting at stop lights, but about drivers insisting on using the drive through at fast food restaurants. I realize the stop and go of a long line at a drive through is much easier than that pesky walk into McD's. But hey, gas is cheap right? Oh wait...
For your reading pleasure... Gas Saving Driving Tips
So every time you complain about gas prices, start thinking, "What am I doing to help myself" Its time to start changing our habits.
8 comments:
My idea: if we are going to insist on living in suburbs, then there should be a zoning law passed that says that the center of every subdivision must have a "commercial zone."
The idea being that this central area could host a small "corner store" style general store, an ice-cream shop, and maybe a deli and coffee shop. This is NOT to hold another gas station or McDonald's, but to encourage a central "necessities" district that's within walking distance of suburbanites.
Besides the obvious benefits of not having to drive everywhere, and taking more cars off the roads doing the "quick run to the grocery store to get milk", there is an obvious social advantage. People in a neighborhood will bump into each other more, learn more about each other, and a street-side community will form again.
Throw in a rotating farmers market that shows up in certain subdivisions on certain days of the week, and encourage people to pick up FRESH food every day, and we'd all be healthier and feel better too.
and people wonder why Fort Wayne is the dumbest and fattest city in the USA.
Dave, you idea is one of the dumbest things I've ever read.
Anon 7:23,
Being insulting is a poor way to get your point across. Rather than simply dismissing it as dumb, could you please explain why you think the idea is dumb?
Timed lights is a cost effective measure to reduce the time of daily commutes and attract people from out of town. Frankly, since drivers pay more taxes than pedestrians, we are entitled to have more money spent on infrastructure to accomodate us. You already have sidewalks downtown, what else do you need to walk? Free foot rubs?
Being part of the motoring class does not entitle you to be "more equal" than pedestrians.
In regards to approving/building more housing additions/subdivisions in the "vast reaches of Allen county", you might want to check out this story which was in the FW News Sentinel:
http://www.news-sentinel.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080529/NEWS/805290333/0/FRONTPAGE
Looks as if a new resort/subdivision is being planned for the Cedar Creek area in northern Allen Co. Never mind that the President of the County Land Commission is the owner of the land that is up for approval.
Not too mention, the Cedar Creek area is one of the last great wooded, natural areas left in Allen County.
Not to add insult to injury, but I found this recent Bill McKibben quote very fitting in regards to the McMansions which seem to pop up out of nowhere in the far reaches of Allen County:
“The average size of new U.S. homes has more than doubled over the past couple of generations, even as the number of people residing in them has shrunk by nearly a full person. The last glory days of the now-fading construction boom were the most insane of all: Outer rings of crenelated and turreted fortresses were sprouting near virtually every U.S. city, each dwelling looking as if it had been designed for an entry-level monarch. The really rich, meanwhile, amused themselves by building above every ski hill and beach ranks of second homes that looked like nothing so much as modernist junior high schools. The environmental costs are myriad, of course—more materials used in construction (making cement for foundations alone is a prime contributor to global warming) and more energy used to heat and power all the resulting square footage. You can turn the thermostat and power a degree or two, but if the furnace is warming a 4,500 square feet, it’s a token gesture.” —Bill McKibben
Vote for Bob,
I have now seen your stupidity first hand.
Anon 8:03
The best cure for my alleged ignorance is to explain either the fault in my logic or the inaccuracy of my facts. If you are capable of more than name-calling, then please enlighten me.
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