I do not live in a pedestrian-friendly environment. Which is to say, I live in America, outside of a major city. It was very hard for me to embrace being a driver again. I grew up in a suburb, but spent all of my adult life until now in a city. That meant mass transit and lots of walking. Not all of which was good. I love the fact that I no longer have to carry my meager supply of groceries home -- a mile and 1/2 walk -- in the snow. And I'm not against car travel... I love being a passenger, and there is nothing greater than driving down Route 1 on the way to Key West. I just find driving to be tedious and annoying.
Walking isn't much of an option here. There are sidewalks, but the traffic is so intense that you barely feel safe walking on them. At first, I worried that I would feel self-conscious being a walker. There are so few other walkers that you really do stand out. I hated the thought that people would stare at me, especially if I were all sweaty. Then I realized that attention is exactly what you want. If drivers see you, they're less likely to accidentally jump the curb and run you over.
Major intersections involve the dreaded "pressing of the button." You know the crosswalk button? The one that you secretly suspect is not even attached to anything? Yeah, that one. On most roads, there are 4-6 lanes of traffic -- and this can grow to 8-10 lanes if you have special turn-only lanes. I'd be better off trying to cross the Florida Turnpike. Also, U-turns are generally legal, and present a hazard for motorists as well as a pedestrians. See, when you get behind the wheel of a car that is located in Florida, a funny thing happens: your turn signal is rendered non-functional. Add that to overall sense of "right-of-way" entitlement, and you walk at your own peril.
Most of this discussion is pointless. We live in such sprawl that nearly everywhere I want to go is just out of reasonable walking distance. "Reasonable walking distance" means "does not take 2 hours to get there." This is why I want a bike.
I dream of being a bike rider! It is, in fact, one of my New Year's resolutions. I visualize myself on my shiny new bike, dashing around town, rolling past the ocean, cruising through a park. Sometimes this bike is black, sometimes it is powder blue; I have not fully decided yet. I'm not actually a competent bike rider -- yet. I will be! However, I have no experience riding in traffic. My juvenile escapades on a bicycle were brief, and never involved populated areas. I want so badly to ride my bike to Walgreens, to the gym (2.9 miles), to the grocery store (1.4 miles), even to the library (4.6 miles). These all seem like reasonable distances, but are still intimidating for someone with 0 hours of experience playing in traffic.
I must also face the likelihood of the shiny new bike being stolen. There are regular notices posted at the gym about cars being broken into, and a fair amount of petty crime in this general area. What makes me think my bike is going to be safe? Would I end up having to walk home?
So I imagine it like this. I have already located several roadways that lead to my desired destinations with very little traffic, and very wide sidewalks. Yes, riding on the sidewalk is probably a ticketable offense here, but I am going to be a grown woman wearing a helmet and wobbling mightily. I think the police will overlook me. I have counted the number of intersections I need to cross, and I know that I can get off the bike to press the button if necessary. Finally, I am prepared to buy both a U-lock and a cable lock to secure my bike upon my arrival -- several cable locks, if that's what it takes.
I really, really want this to work.
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