It struck me as I walked from my broken-down car to work recently how pedestrian unfriendly Red Deer really is.
Gaetz Avenue is the busiest pedestrian corridor in Red Deer.
How often do you see people not walking on the sidewalks? Why do think that is? Maybe the sidewalks are built too inconveniently? Or not at all.
The new side walks on Gaetz, near 32nd Street, are even worse. They all follow pretty curves, that if followed would add several minutes to your trip.
Bet there are going to be many slip-and-fall injuries this winter as people short-cut this mess.
Why is it a good idea to cross the service road from the sidewalk to where the lights are? Extra danger because we’re too cheap to think it through?
Has anyone ever followed the side walks the whole way from downtown to 67 Street on Taylor Drive? I really doubt it.
How many times do you need to change from east to west to stay on the sidewalk? In the winter, I bet you could get frost bite waiting for the extra lights to change.
I would lay big money that no one that was actually going somewhere has actually done it.
But in the kingdom of the pickup truck, I doubt anyone cares.
Robert Lee
Red Deer