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Sample Op-Ed
I admit it: I
don’t walk enough. But now it’s harder for me to come up with
excuses. My blissful ignorance ended when, as head of the PTA at
Smith School in Grand Falls, I was put in charge of our upcoming
Walk to School Day.
To prepare
myself for the task, I did some research. I was surprised to learn
that only 10 percent of children nationwide walk to school
regularly. And only 25 percent of those kids who live within a
mile of their schools are regular walkers.
This, despite
the fact that walking is one of the easiest, simplest, and most
versatile forms of physical activity available. It’s also a great
way to spend time with our children, get to know our neighbors and
see our community up close.
To figure out
why more of us in Grand Falls aren’t out strolling, I walked my
6-year-old son to Smith School last week. To help with my
research, I brought along a Walkability Checklist that I
downloaded on the Internet at www.walkinginfo.org. The checklist
encourages residents to pay attention to their surroundings —
including traffic, safety and sidewalk characteristics — to
determine just how “walker friendly” their communities are.
Here’s what I
found out about my neighborhood.
We have too
many fast drivers and too much heavy traffic, making it nearly
impossible to walk safely, especially where our kids are
concerned. At most crosswalks, the white paint meant to alert
drivers to pedestrians was faded, leaving motorists with little
warning that people might step out onto the street. At busy
intersections, hurried drivers often turned left long after the
light had gone red on their end. An unsuspecting walker easily
could have crossed into the street and landed in the hospital.
From time to
time, we were forced to walk in the streets because cars parked in
driveways had blocked off the sidewalks; or we walked on lawns to
avoid tripping on the deeply chipped and damaged cement sidewalks.
We
encountered other hindrances unrelated to traffic issues. As we
approached Smith School, my son noticed there were empty soda cans
scattered along the sidewalk, but no trash can to toss them in
after he’d picked them up. And while I was surprised to find more
kids than I expected walking to school, it concerned me that most
were traveling alone, rather than in the safety of groups.
Walking my
son to school and really seeing how my surroundings discouraged
walking at first overwhelmed me. But after more research, I went
into action, alerting friends and neighbors to sign on to help
with a campaign.
We asked the
city to upgrade nearby crosswalks with fresh coats of paint. To
make crosswalks in busy areas stand out, we asked that signs and
small orange flags be set up to alert approaching drivers to slow
down and yield the right-of-way to pedestrians. The city also is
considering putting more money into placing trash cans along our
streets to encourage people to pick up after themselves.
Our
neighborhood is now deciding whether to create an “adopt a street”
program to encourage everyone to take an hour a week to pick up
litter or to sponsor beautification or tree-planting days.
And, to
ensure that no child walks to school alone, we’ve petitioned Smith
School to create buddy systems and expand the hours of crossing
guard shifts at busy intersections to assist the kids who get to
school early, as well as the stragglers.
You can play
a role in making our city a more walkable, healthy and safe place
to live. Encourage our city leaders to support initiatives
designed to make areas safer and more attractive for walkers.
Educate your children to walk safely as they travel to school and
around the neighborhood. Most of all, organize your neighbors and
local merchants to take a “walkability” challenge.
You’ll be
surprised by what you find.
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