CHENNAI: Cars stuck in traffic jams, parking problems, long signals — the problems of motorists are plenty, and are often met with proposals of new flyovers, extra lanes and wider roads. But pedestrians have to struggle with bad footpaths, no footpaths, and no safe crossings, with no end in sight. These ‘woes’ are sadly relegated to a lesser priority, as the human body can squeeze through anywhere, unlike a solid metal car.
There was a time when walking was a convenient mode of transport, and people did not think too much about walking even 4-5 km. ‘Great streets’ all over the world though are more often great places to walk in, than to just drive past. It is on foot that you explore a city’s landmarks, go to a store, have a conversation, eat at a café, etc. It is on foot that you engage with the city. What are the top pedestrian peeves that a daily walker experiences?
Shrinking space for pedestrians
If there is no footpath, what else can you do but walk on the road? But motorists treat you like you have no right of way, and walking involves dodging rows of parked vehicles while getting continuously honked at by vehicles as though you are walking on the road by choice. You have to keep looking to your left and right, not just to cross the road but also to walk along it, as well as look down for potholes and stones.
The right to space doesn’t even extend to many existing footpaths — besides billboards, extensions of shops and parked vehicles, pedestrians also have to put up with two-wheelers just popping onto the footpaths and cruising along to beat the traffic jams.
At crossings, you are stranded
Pedestrians have no right of way, even at a zebra crossing. If there is no signal, there is hardly any chance of anyone slowing down, even if they see pedestrians waiting. If there is a signal, motorists treat it as just a vehicle intersection, and stand a good three feet ahead of the so called zebra strip for the signal to turn green.
If you have to cross the road, you have to go to the front of the traffic pileup and cross along with the vehicle flow. Crossing signs on the road are often fading and barely visible, and are also rarely repainted after the road is tarred over.
The purpose of zebra crossings has been diluted so much that even pedestrians have forgotten that they have a right to the road, and you see 60-year olds trying to run across the road in fear.
Motorists drive on all lanes
You were taught to ‘Look to the left and right while you cross the road’. And you have to do this whichever side of the road you are on, as there always are plenty of motorists driving in the wrong direction. You are supposed to reach the middle of the road and then look the other side, but since lanes merge into each other resulting in no defined middle and no ‘refuge area’ to stand and look the other way.
If there is a median marking the middle, chances are high that it is broken. And after very long stretches, you’ll find a namesake 3-foot gap with a width of less than a foot where you can stand.
No right of way for pedestrians
Completely ‘pedestrianised’ streets are popular across the world in places like Paris and London. But even in many situations where automobiles are allowed, there is such a high volume of pedestrians that the vehicles are forced to slow down to the walkers’ pace, and the street feels like a pedestrian street.
In Chennai however, where there is high pedestrian volume, motorists still dominate. They may be forced to slow down if people are trying to get into Ranganathan Street or the bylanes of Parrys Corner, but they’re not going to be quiet about it, with incessant honking. There is strength in numbers, but not so much for pedestrians!
Safety a big issue for walkers
Pedestrians also have to dodge overflowing garbage cans and leaky drains. Besides, a transparent, well-lit street where you are visible makes for a much safer walk than a dark footpath where you may run into a chain snatcher or a groper. Bad street-lighting is a huge deterrent to pedestrians especially women, and many are afraid of using a local train or bus only because of the unsafe last mile walk.