Why don't people like sidewalks?

We don't have sidewalks in my neighborhood. When we walk in our neighborhood, we have to walk in the street. Occaisionally we encounter someone who seems to want to hit us, which can be scary and is always annoying. A number of people walk in the mornings and I carefully watch for them as I drive half asleep to work. I have to watch for children all the time. They play in the streets around here. Frankly, I am suprised that no child has been hit while I've lived there. I don't know why we don't have sidewalks. We rent our duplex and have only lived here a few years. I have seen articles about subdivisions and other neighborhoods though where the residents were extremely opposed to sidewalks in their neighborhoods. Personally, I like sidewalks and wish that they were present in our neighborhood. Shouldn't people be able to walk without fear of being hit? Shouldn't people be able to drive without fear of hitting someone?

we have sidewalks and people STILL WALK AND JOG IN THE STREET ANYWAY.

It drives me nuts.

kinda defeats the purpose

It's a real problem here in the winter, because some people (or landlords) don't shovel their walks. Not only do they walk in the street, they walk as if they own the street. Bastards! :grr:

Grandma's area doesn't have sidewalks either cause the residents didn't want to pay for them.

I don't know what the situation is in her area or my area, but I remember reading an article a few years ago about the city wanting to put sidewalks in a new housing develpment and many residents showing up to oppose it.
Personally, I think sidewalks should be municipally funded. The sidewalk is technically public property because anyone can walk on it without the property owners permission. It is a public safety concern as well. Pedestrians can interfere with motor vehicle traffic on city streets.

they didn't want to pay the taxes.

It irritates me to no end that some of the sidewalks around my area aren't complete. That is, one segment of sidewalk ends, and then there's just grass or dirt and the sidewalk picks up somewhere else.

I did find a route I can use to walk to the grocery store that has sidewalk the whole way, though. And there's enough sidewalk to walk to my daughter's preschool also (about 2.5 miles away).

in some regions if you're not driving you're automatically suspicious. A lot of these neighborhoods also don't have public transportation for the same reason.

Walking a bit everyday is easy, convient healthy exercise. Instead, people would rather pay a monthly fee to a gym where they drive. It seems a bit silly. Of course I suppose their reasoning goes like this: walking=cannot afford a car or walking=cannot afford a gym membership. Of course they could try this one, walking=not capable of stealing much stuff and driving an SUV or mini van=able to steal a lot of stuff.
Personally, I think that a lot of things would be better if more people walked.

Walking is not only great exercise, but an environmentally friendly mode of transportation that doesn't rely on fossil fuels from other countries.

I'm lucky enough to live in a neighborhood built on a human scale where it's less than a 15 minute walk to 90% of the things you'd need go out for. When I visit my folks who live in a suburb it now drives me completely fucking insane that you have to hop into a car to go anywhere. I feel imprisoned. And it's all because of the idiotic planning that rejects mixed-use zoning and demands that everyone have a giganto lawn which nobody ever seems to do anything with except mow.

when you could walk to things it's frowned upon. Maybe it's cause I'm a girl but my parents always freaked and thought it was unsafe. I once walked to a friend's house(30 min walk) because it was EARTH DAY and my parents yelled at me and made me stay there till they picked me up.

The Goddess didn't give you feet for the brake pedal and the gas pedal.

there should be no execuses
Residential areas should have them.

My current neighborhood does have sidewalks but the town as a whole is very unfriendly to pedestrians. In neighborhoods where I lived with no sidewalks, the purpose was to keep people from walking and "loitering." You know if people go out side there can only be one reason and that reason is to buy and sell crack so it hurts the values of the neighborhood. I'm serious. This is the way the anti-sidewalk crowd thinks. If you were a non drug dealer type worthy person, you'd be driving a car!

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

when did not being able to afford a car become a vice!

how would one get to work without a vehicle? :shrug:

The bus ?

Ok we have some kids in this town... but none nearby. I think the "Johnsons" have 2 but they live on the Barron Rd.. There are some kids across town (about 6 miles from here)And I know there must be some on my Rd too because the schoolbus goes up there.

Word has it that the little elementary kids will now be sent off to nearby towns because there are not enough children to keep the school running. Thank God my kid is in college or I'd be furious. I still am but....never mind. It's a local thing. :grr:

I'd love to have sidewalks but I am thankful I have Paved Rds. Though I don't rollerskate or skatboard anymore, If I could'a, I would'a. back in the day :-)