Comment on Anon takes the last bus
Peck@lemmy.world 8 hours agoFunnily enough I’ve lived in all 3 categories of these places.
Rural: no sidewalks and large distances. Walking is usually impractical because of distances and lack of sidewalks. Your house is most likely right on the side of the local road. To get anywhere your real option is biking, but cars go fast on these road. You better not be caught at night or on heavy rain, because some grandma is going to take you out. Many times people were shouting at me from cars passing by, one time threw an empty can, couple times some wrappers and stuff.
Suburban: walking most likely is an option as is biking. If you are lucky, there are sidewalks, but I’m my case there were large portions of the road without sidewalks. Even worse sometimes short route takes you through intersections that aren’t easily navigable by pedestrians. No lights, slip lanes etc. it’s very uncomfortable walking or biking on such roads for long time. Your best option is to try to find circuitous route through neighborhoods and only cross major roads when needed. That increases travel time by a lot at expense of higher safety and keeping your hearing. Fewer shouts from the car, but they happen still.
Urban: that’s the most walkable setup. The only one I really recommend. I’ve lived in what considered a very bad part of town and managed to walk to store and gym with no problem. But I’m a guy and was young then, so your milage might vary.
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 6 hours ago
I’ve kind of had the opposite experience as you.
I don’t mind walking in rural areas because there aren’t many cars and people tend to just leave me alone. I have had people ask of I need a ride or something, never had cans thrown at me or anything. Yeah, sidewalks aren’t really a thing, but there’s usually a generous gravel or grass strip next to the roadway. It’s a bit sketchier at night with drunk drivers, but they’re rare enough that you just need to stay aware of approaching cars.
In suburban areas, if you know the area somewhat, you can avoid 99% of the traffic by taking side streets. Sidewalks are hit and miss, but walking in the road is usually fine since people are watching out for kids amyway. Night is a little sketchy, but it’s mostly teens and you can hear them blaring music and squealing tires from fairly far away.
Urban areas scare me because population density is way higher so your chances of being in the same place as a criminal is pretty high. I didn’t grow up in the city, so I maybe spending more time there would help me feel more comfortable, but it seems like he bad areas are pretty close to the “regular” areas and it’s possible to accidentally take a wrong turn somewhere and get into trouble. Nights are terrifying since with drunk people on the streets both in cars and as pedestrians. It’s fine if you’re in a nicer/commercial area, not great elsewhere.
So my order of preference in walking is first rural areas, then suburban areas, and urban areas last. But I’ve spent most of my time in rural and suburban areas, so I admittedly don’t have a ton of experience in urban areas.
Peck@lemmy.world 3 hours ago
Very interesting. Thanks for sharing. I do get a feeling that you mean walking for pleasure. Although that’s important, it’s much more important doing chores and going to work. That means that your destination is predetermined and your ability to avoid unpleasant and dangerous sections is limited.
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 2 hours ago
No, I really don’t like walking for pleasure, I only walk to get places. I bike a lot more, again, to get places. In suburban areas, there are a ton of side streets to take, so as long as I avoid the main arteries and the “arteries” (side streets the locals race down), I’m good.
Some areas don’t have a ton of options, especially commercial areas like strip malls and whatnot. But generally speaking, there are options. For example, we have one main road where pretty much all the stores are, and cars go quite fast. But there are also alleys behind stores where the big trucks go that are almost always empty and where the employees tend to go on break, so I can avoid a lot of the busy roads and parking lots that way. That works well in suburban areas, whereas in urban areas, those alleys can be a bit sketchy.
But yeah, it really depends on the area and where you work.