Hit by pickup, woman charged with walking on wrong side of road

A 62-year-old Sarnia woman has been charged for walking on the wrong
side of the road after being hit by a pickup truck early today.
London Free Press March 11, 2008

Whether you're living on a limited income or you care about climate change or both, you have probably noticed the way our cities privilege cars. One need not look past the front of their home to see the obvious understructure of our day to day lives. Such privilege is especially blatant in times of heavy snowfalls. The road plows, sand and salt trucks are out and finished long before we see even a hint of of sidewalk maintenance take place (i believe the city budget that was passed three weeks ago denied an accessibility funding increase for more sidewalk maintenance in the winter). I have a difficult time navigating the deep snow trenches and ice slicks as a young, physically able person. I can't imagine how difficult it must be for the elderly, those who need physical assistance or parents with buggies/small children. When a heavy snowfall hits our city, I don't blame anyone for using the freshly plowed roads to transit by foot or wheelchair. Although, there are some obvious problems with refusing a limited access status in our current infrastructure.

When an individual, out of necessity, decides to use the privileged space set out for cars, they are in harms way from start to finish. We know this. This is not news to us. When people are being flanked by fish tailing 3/4 tonne death machines, they are not happily accepting this risk. They are, more often then not, moving as fast as they possibly can to get off the road as soon as possible. For the obvious reasons, limiting the amount of time that we are subjected to the dangers of our urban speedways is a high priority. So, when I read articles like this one in the free press, I can't help but feel ashamed. Ashamed that we, as a society, would accept blaming an elderly person for using the only space that is available to them, for travel, in terrible conditions. To consider this a reasonable way to treat the people who worked so hard to create the privileged lives we live is sad. While this situation happened in Sarnia, countless others happen just like it, every winter, here in London.

Not to worry, spring is almost here. The treacherous sidewalks will no longer be. Transportation will again be navigable for most. Unfortunatley, like clockwork, spring also brings the annual bicycle hatefest that London seems to admire so deeply. Inspired by our car driving culture, the week long "crackdown" on "rogue" cyclists will result in the mass justification of a one person per car lifestyle. I digress...