Sidewalk question

[PDieter]

Have you been complaining about the city not clearing the streets while not clearing your own sidewalk?

fess up

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[Caduceus]

Because the chance of hurting someone due to being clumsy when walking in the snow is FAR less then the chance of hurting someone while driving due to poor road conditions…?

Walking in the snow isn’t THAT bad. Why people are so upset about un-shoveled sidewalks is beyond me, personally.

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[PDieter]

no because complaining is so much easier than actually doing something.

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[JanS]

Well, Cad, for those of us who aren’t quite as surefooted as you are, it IS a big deal when sidewalks are slippery. I had my first hip replacement in Aug. 2004, and my second one just this past May. My biggest fear is falling, and due to a medical condition am sometimes not quite balanced in my walking, so it’s sort of a double whammy. I don’t call myself disabled, because I’m not, in the basic sense. There are people with far more problems than I have who have had to remain inside during this “snowmare”…so please don’t overlook this aspect of out society.

Now, having said that? The biggist culprit that I know who hasn’t done anything as far as our front sidewalk, or the 20-25 foot walk up to our apt. bldg., is my landlord. Our parking lot behind our building was never touched either. He is not on site, but I do know he was at the building last week, and made a comment to a neighbor about the walk looking treacherous, and wow, is that gonna be a problem melting. Yeah, good landlord – lol.

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[Caduceus]

Well most of the sidewalks that were shoveled, froze over in the evening/night and in the mornings were icy. They thawed during the day, a little but I prefer walking on snow, then ice. :]

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[mellaw6565]

Caduceus – my sidewalks didn’t do that – I cleared them after the storm, threw a little kosher salt down, and they stayed clear with no ice.

As someone who’s had to negotiate both the roads and the sidewalks A LOT in the past few days, I can tell you that many of the uncleared sidewalks are treacherous and now I understand why so many people have been walking in the street, which causes its’ own hazards for drivers.

Having lived in the NorthEast part of the country, I’m appalled at how many businesses and apartments/condos here have not cleared their walks. Definitely the opposite practice in the NE.

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[JanS]

Mellaw…I’m glad you mentioned Kosher salt.One doesn’t have to go out and find rocksalt for it to work….almost any kind of salt will do…and just because Mayor McCondo won’t use it doesn’t mean that we can’t. I say we all go get the Costco sized bag, keep it in our cars, and spread it randomly as a good deed thing…sort of a random act of kindness, if you will. We can pretend that the world is our great big ear of corn – lol….

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[Sue]

PDieter, we shovelled our snow within an hour or so of every snowfall and used salt on the walks (we had salt from last year – are always prepared). My husband shovelled our own walk, our neighbor’s in our duplex, and attempted to clear the entire way from our house to the bus stop, including the crosswalk across Fauntleroy. And the alley out back so we could eventually get our car out, and making sure storm drains are clear. So yes, we’ve done our part and have every right to complain to the city about roads, Metro, etc.

Caduceus, I’m in the same boat as Jan (although different body parts) – I find it absolutely frightening walking on this stuff because of such severe potential of injury to me. I had to walk 1 mike round trip to the junction last night for an appointment I’d already cancelled 3 times due to weather. 95% of it on unshovelled walks, and it was absolutely terrifying, taking twice as long as normal to walk it. When it was packed snow (as I walked home on Tuesday) it wasn’t as bad, but now that it was partly slushy, partly icy, my ankles kept twisting with unexpected movements depending on what I walked into, which in turn was twisting my knees. It wasn’t pretty. And I’m in pain now, despite never having fallen. People that are totally ablebodied don’t really understand – I know my husband is sympathetic but doesn’t really get it.

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[JoB]

it is very hard for people with balance or joint stability issues to walk on uneven surfaces…

having said that.. we haven’t cleared ours because we don’t have a shovel… except for my little planting shovel. i think hubby thought being a renter meant no yard work:)

we will be fixing that as soon as we can find one.

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[elikapeka]

We shoveled every time it snowed and accumulated more than a couple of inches…lots of shoveling, but easier on hubby’s bad back to do a little at a time. Some salt on the sidewalk and ice melt on the porch steps (figure the wild critters don’t go up there), and our walks stayed clear. I know from experience in climates with frequent snow that when it’s fresh, it’s easier to walk in, but as it thaws and refreezes, you get icy uneven surfaces that make for very unsure footing, especially when it snows again on top of the partially melted stuff.

And thanks for the reminders about those of us who don’t get around quite so well. The terrain and climate of our city makes it challenging for those folks, and it’s something I don’t think our city leaders and planners take into account enough when trying to force everyone into bicycles and mass transit.

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