A Pedestrian's Plea

Dear Neighbors,

I live on Red River Street near Hyde Park, and frequently walk around Hyde Park and environs. Unfortunately, homeowners in this area are in the habit of landscaping their yards all the way to the street with shrubs, cactus, and fences, and then parking a car at the curb. This leaves nowhere for pedestrians to walk except in the middle of the street, at the mercy of speeding cars.

The pedestrian right-of-way extends 10 feet from the curb at the edge of a homeowners property. By law and tradition, somewhere in this 10-foot-wide strip, a walkable path for pedestrians is supposed to be maintained clear of obstruction. The law is seldom enforced and seldom respected. Even where sidewalks exist, they are often blocked by parked cars, garbage cans, and foliage.

I don't believe that most Hyde Park residents are intentionally making war on pedestrians. I'm sure that this habitual obstruction of the public right-of-way is just due to carelessness. Please, please, homeowners, don't block the pedestrian right-of-way. Let's start treating pedestrians as full citizens, equal in dignity and importance to people in cars.