A Sprawling Development

In this reading by Robertson (2014) in regard to livable cities, I found myself thinking about my own experiences with every page turned. "Distances between destinations are too great for walking and large, high-speed roads are not safe or comfortable for pedestrians or bicycles, forcing the use of cars to fulfill basic daily needs and cutting people off from the outdoors and each other" (Robertson, 2014, p. 209). Not for a sheer moment in my life do I recall taking a bicycle or walking to a given destination for the entire day, all of them obligated me to take a car. Of course, there are those few instances in which I was in Chicago, for example, or another country that I had to defend myself by walking to a given place in which a car was not required. But even then, by the end of the day I'd end up taking a taxi to a location that was not possible to get to, by either biking or walking. It's frustrating to know that I have to rely on my car to take me somewhere, and that I can't simply walk and be there.

The bean and me. Photo by tagkast 

This hit me when I first visited Chicago in the summer of 2015. It was a "spur of the moment" trip that I decided to do on my own, and to this day I feel nostalgia for what my life was in those six short days. I literally walked everywhere. If I wanted to get some groceries, the next grocery store was a short five or so minute walk from my friend's place. If I wanted to hit downtown, it was a simple ten-minute walk to the train station. Words can't describe how amazing I felt, walking the sidewalks confidently to wherever I wanted to go. Train stations were everywhere you looked, and the rail system was beyond easy to navigate around which only further helped. "Transit-oriented development (TOD), in which neighborhood development is clustered around transit stations and located along transit corridors, is a central element in smart growth. Walkable, compact, mixed neighborhoods allow people to meet most of their daily needs on foot". (Robertson, 2014, p. 218) 

Me in Cartagena, Colombia. Photo by Ruth G.

The same happened to me when I went to Colombia. The area I stayed at in Cartagena, had streets mainly made for pedestrians. The streets were small and built enough for people to get through, and, again, everything was within walking distance. Of course, I had to end up using a taxi to get back to my hotel but the point is that walking felt, for the most part, safe. When I arrived back home I would find myself in a rut and filled with nostalgia of those days walking the streets without being scared for my safety. Where I currently live, nothing is within walking distance. If I wanted to go to a mall I would have to take my car, and even then, it's a 20 minute drive— just imagine walking. The majority of cities face this problem, save for the rare few places that make it somewhat easier to get around without cars.

"Sprawl affects not only planetary health but social and individual health as well. Research surveys show significant links between the built environment and obesity. Physical inactivity is an independent risk factor for chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease" (Robertson, 2014, p. 209)
During and throughout my entire childhood I've been raised in the suburbs of New Jersey. If I had ever walked on the sidewalk it was to get to the next block to my bus stop on some mornings, and even then, my mother would usually take me in her car if she had the time. No kids were encouraged to ride their bikes considering how dangerous it was. Sidewalks were narrow and the high number of bustling cars making their way  to work every morning was enough to make anyone reconsider riding a bike to school. I would not be exaggerating if I were to say only about five bikes would be parked right by the front doors. Even though our school practiced a motto of healthy eating and having physical activity, here we were around five hundred students having to find a means of transportation that refrained us from exerting any energy for our health.

"When innovative solutions actually come from members of a community, the solutions are far more likely to be implemented and to remain durable elements of community life. Real sustainability gains from an initiative depend a lot upon how people actually live in their homes and communities" (Robertson, 2014, p. 212)

Source: Robertson, M. (2014). Sustainability principles and practice. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.