Whether you live in an urban, suburban, or rural area, there’s a good chance that using a sidewalk, in some capacity, is part of your everyday routine. Whether crossing over a sidewalk to get to your car in a parking lot or walking several blocks on your commute to your office downtown, sidewalks are critical for creating safe places for pedestrians away from the streets. But what happens when cities don’t take ownership over sidewalk maintenance, and they’re left to be protected by the people who just use them?
Sidewalks were once the main sources of transportation in American cities and the epicenter of social happenings. Before cars existed, sidewalks were places where all modes of transit came together- horses pulled carriages, people roamed freely, and streetcars moved people from place to place. The unruliness of the “sidewalk” allowed people to freely move in all directions. When cars were introduced and became mainstream transportation sources, sidewalks became what we know them to be now- slivers of pavement pushed aside and designated for people to walk on, with signals indicating when we are legally allowed to cross the street to the next sidewalk.
