Once again we find ourselves in a place so bike- and pedestrian-unfriendly that it’s dangerous. Yesterday we walked to the laundromat with three big bags of clothes and linens piled into our small dock cart. The way looked to be along quiet residential streets but it turned out those two-lane roads are a major high-traffic route. There are no sidewalks and no shoulder, with a ditch on either side. There’s no choice but to walk in the street, and we walked single file facing traffic for about three quarters of a mile. One after the other the SUVs zoomed past, barely moving over to accommodate us. We had nowhere to go. At a cross street a woman pulled into the road, looked one way, then tore out in front of us. She was on the phone and never noticed us. To top it off, two cops on motorcycles nearly clipped us.
Even though Trader Joe’s is only four miles away, we’re going to take the bus instead of ride our bikes. I just don’t trust the drivers here.
Hampton Roads, you’ve got some work to do.
Well said, Marce. I hope they’re listening!