There are no upcoming events right now.
Why not post one?
Recent Articles
- Justice for Indigenous Peoples is Long Overdueby Ryan McGreal, published June 30, 2021 in Commentary
(0 comments)
- Third-Party Election Advertising Ban About Silencing Workersby Chantal Mancini, published June 29, 2021 in Politics
(0 comments)
- Did Doug Ford Test the 'Great Barrington Declaration' on Ontarians?by Ryan McGreal, published June 29, 2021 in Special Report: COVID-19
(1 comment)
- An Update on Raise the Hammerby Ryan McGreal, published June 28, 2021 in Site Notes
(0 comments)
- Nestlé Selling North American Water Bottling to an Private Equity Firmby Doreen Nicoll, published February 23, 2021 in Healing Gaia
(0 comments)
- Jolley Old Sam Lawrenceby Sean Burak, published February 19, 2021 in Special Report: Cycling
(0 comments)
- Right-Wing Extremism is a Driving Force in Modern Conservatismby Ryan McGreal, published February 18, 2021 in Special Report: Extremism
(0 comments)
- Municipalities Need to Unite against Ford's Firehose of Land Use Changesby Michelle Silverton, published February 16, 2021 in Special Report
(0 comments)
- Challenging Doug Ford's Pandemic Narrativeby Ryan McGreal, published January 25, 2021 in Special Report: COVID-19
(1 comment)
- The Year 2020 Has Been a Wakeup Callby Michael Nabert, published December 31, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
- The COVID-19 Marshmallow Experimentby Ryan McGreal, published December 22, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
- All I Want for Christmas, 2020by Kevin Somers, published December 21, 2020 in Entertainment and Sports
(1 comment)
- Hamilton Shelters Remarkably COVID-19 Free Thanks to Innovative Testing Programby Jason Allen, published December 21, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
- Province Rams Through Glass Factory in Stratfordby Doreen Nicoll, published December 21, 2020 in Healing Gaia
(0 comments)
- We Can Prevent Traffic Deaths if We Make Safety a Real Priorityby Ryan McGreal, published December 08, 2020 in Special Report: Walkable Streets
(5 comments)
- These Aren't 'Accidents', These Are Resultsby Tom Flood, published December 04, 2020 in Special Report: Walkable Streets
(1 comment)
- Conservation Conundrumby Paul Weinberg, published December 04, 2020 in Special Report
(0 comments)
- Defund Police Protest Threatens Fragile Ruling Classby Cameron Kroetsch, published December 03, 2020 in Special Report: Anti-Racism
(2 comments)
- Measuring the Potential of Biogas to Reduce GHG Emissionsby John Loukidelis and Thomas Cassidy, published November 23, 2020 in Special Report: Climate Change
(0 comments)
- Ontario Squanders Early Pandemic Sacrificeby Ryan McGreal, published November 18, 2020 in Special Report: COVID-19
(0 comments)
Article Archives
Blog Archives
Site Tools
Feeds
By j.servus (registered) | Posted August 28, 2013 at 12:58:49 in reply to Comment 91454
"Worse" refers to other values, too, besides safety. On safety, I have nothing to add to Ryan's observations.
But comfort counts for a lot, too. One-way thoroughfares make for faster moving traffic, which is louder and more intimidating to pedestrians.
Then there is convenience. Pedestrians are also transit users, and, as I mentioned, one-ways make it harder to use the bus. HSR stops are close together--perhaps 150 meters, in my estimate--for a good reason; but the point is defeated when the East and West lines are 450 meters apart, as King and Main are at Barnesdale. One-way thoroughfares privilege the convenience of thru-traffic over local users. They push pedestrians and cyclists out of their way. They push bicyclists on to the sidewalk. They force local drivers to loop back to destinations.
Then there is commerce. Your points about commerce are well taken, but of course pedestrian and bike traffic are both depressed by one-way thoroughfares. So, consequently, is a lot of casual and adventitious commerce. Because, as Ryan mentioned, two-way streets cause drivers to go more slowly and be more aware of their surroundings, they will tend to notice shops along their routes. For similar reasons, they will find it easier to plan a route that takes them by a particular shop. Again, since I always prefer to walk along King rather than Main, I will never stop into a convenience store on Main for a snack and a bottle of water. I will seldom walk by, and therefore seldom call to mind, say, a barber shop on Main (if there is one) rather than on King.
I could see a limited use of one-way street design in residential neighborhoods for the purpose of preventing thru-traffic (i.e., by alternating the direction of the street). But for urban arteries, I don't like them. Until I lived downtown, I did not have a real apprehension of the extent to which one-way thoroughfares privilege the convenience of suburban commuters over the livability and vitality of urban neighborhoods.
Permalink | Context