Driving

[daisy16 0]

I drove a lot in Canada, but I walked my dog a mile every am and pm. We really miss our outdoors walks. Even though we're in the country, I have to drive 10 miles to find somewhere to walk other than the highway. Lately I've been tresspassing and walking in the woods across the highway from us. I'm afraid of getting caught though.

I really miss walking. It's one of the problems I have with where I live.

I had a laugh at the New Yorkers whining about the transit strike when I realized they were complaining about walking a few blocks that were the equivalent of less than a mile.

LOL oh yeah, my husband say driving and wasting like this is the American way.

Edited February 10, 2006 by daisy16

[purplesneakers 0]

i just generally hate driving here... to get to the supermarket you need to get on and off 2 interstates.. now i drove a lot at home but never did get used to freeways and whatnot... merging here sucks too.. no slowing and creeping in when you can here... oh but the worst, the WORST! is the backwardness of the signs, at least in comparison to at home. for example, instead of left on red when posted, here it's right on red always unless it's posted. what the hell? but that rule changes so quickly.. as soon as i venture outta md and into dc it's completely different. i know how i'll eventually die.

[Jaylen Brit 0]

i just generally hate driving here... to get to the supermarket you need to get on and off 2 interstates.. now i drove a lot at home but never did get used to freeways and whatnot... merging here sucks too.. no slowing and creeping in when you can here... oh but the worst, the WORST! is the backwardness of the signs, at least in comparison to at home. for example, instead of left on red when posted, here it's right on red always unless it's posted. what the hell? but that rule changes so quickly.. as soon as i venture outta md and into dc it's completely different. i know how i'll eventually die.

Well thank you for THOSE nightmares

[Anastassia 0]

Nobody walks anywhere where I live

Streets are empty all the time... I have been here almost 7 months and still can't get used to it.

[Sister Fracas 5]

*shrug* Best answer to not having to drive is move to a city...it's just not feasible to put decent public transportation into every small town across this nation. That's why we live in a big city, don't have a car, don't need one for daily life, and don't have any immediate plans for getting one. It's easy to say public transportation is so great in the UK or any other relatively small country, when those countries are the size of an average state in the U.S. When the U.S. becomes as densely populated as some European countries, maybe there can be buses and trains that are convenient for everyone...but it's a double edged sword...because then we lose so much of the wide open spaces people love...

Edited February 10, 2006 by Frances

[daisy16 0]

Very true frances.

[kc456 0]

Being a pedestrian in the US sucks! I would walk to the store sometimes (about 1 mile) and one occasion I was nearly run over at an intersection. Drivers just don't watch for pedestrians (of course, there are none!).

Well, anyway I was at an intersection waiting for my signal to cross. The right on red is allowed, so what do drivers do? Of course, the look left for any on-coming traffic! And totally ignore me on the right. That's what that driver was doing, and as my signal changed and I started crossing, she started moving and making a right (into me). I got so pissed I kicked her car pretty hard.

Since then I always make sure that the driver sees me before I start to cross.

[RaspberrySwirl 20]

Very true frances.

Agreed.

I just wish the roads were safer for pedestrians/bikers. I love riding my bike but I seem to freak out every other driver on the road.

[Carola 0]

*shrug* Best answer to not having to drive is move to a city...it's just not feasible to put decent public transportation into every small town across this nation. That's why we live in a big city, don't have a car, don't need one for daily life, and don't have any immediate plans for getting one. It's easy to say public transportation is so great in the UK or any other relatively small country, when those countries are the size of an average state in the U.S. When the U.S. becomes as densely populated as some European countries, maybe there can be buses and trains that are convenient for everyone...but it's a double edged sword...because then we lose so much of the wide open spaces people love...

That makes sense.

[silly_chick 0]

I LOVE to drive. I absolutely do! To a grocery store or whatever - I LOVE it!!! I didn't drive in Russia - I'm from Moscow, and we had all kinds of public transportation there, and besides, all the important stores were within a walking distance. I didn't mind doing that, but now that I've learnt to drive, I definitely prefer driving. Public transportation is awful in San Jose area, it's absolutely not an option to get around by bus. However, I used to do some walking here, because I like walking just as I do driving (maybe a tad less...), especially to my fitness club, but well, it's only 2 blocks away...

[Texanadian 10]

I'm going to Houston. Probably the biggest urban sprawl city of any of them. The sidewalks have a lot of unevenness. So if you don't watch where you're going you'll bump into a raised part of the sidewalk and trip. Supposedly from subsidence. But I think the people who built the sidewalks just cheaped out. I tend to walk in parking lots next to the sidewalk instead.

One nice thing about the city is it has HUGE parking lots everywhere you go. Parking is not an issue and generally free.

I actually quite enjoy walking in Houston. There are no zoning bylaws, so people can build anything anywhere. This makes for an interesting mix of businesses in any general area. You never know what to expect when you're out sight seeing.

Edited February 14, 2006 by Texanadian

[de_sjiem 0]

I'm going to Houston. Probably the biggest urban sprawl city of any of them. The sidewalks have a lot of unevenness. So if you don't watch where you're going you'll bump into a raised part of the sidewalk and trip. Supposedly from subsidence. But I think the people who built the sidewalks just cheaped out. I tend to walk in parking lots next to the sidewalk instead.

One nice thing about the city is it has HUGE parking lots everywhere you go. Parking is not an issue and generally free.

I actually quite enjoy walking in Houston. There are no zoning bylaws, so people can build anything anywhere. This makes for an interesting mix of businesses in any general area. You never know what to expect when you're out sight seeing.

Houston is awesome.. my husband's company was cleaning office down there and sent my hubby down there to finish it off.. and they sent me down with him! Which was nice because it was only a few days after we got married so it was a pseudo honeymoon.. so we had to work a little bit we still had time off and we got everything paid for!! (car hotel etc.. lol) it was nice.. :-)