wordsmithlind

I wrote this in hopes of it getting published in the local paper in Algonquin, IL.  I haven’t heard anything from the paper, so here it is…. 

A simple bike ride in Algonquin is not possible.  I take that back, a simple bike ride if one is to leave the neighborhood is not possible.  A carless individual like myself, isolated in the outer ‘burbs, runs into numerous problems.  The gargantuan intersection of Randall and 62 is a risky endeavor on foot as no crosswalks are present.  The same can be said of an attempt on bike.  Both options put the pedestrian at the mercy of the inattentive drivers looking to roll through the red light and make a right turn.  When crosswalks are present, drivers do not think twice about stopping on them, forcing the ped to walk around it.  In many instances, especially along route 31, sidewalks end, leaving no option but to ride or walk on the main road with cars zipping by at 35-plus mph, unaccustomed to having bikers and pedestrians present.  To add to this, there are many places where the sidewalks end only to continue as an improvised footpath well worn into the soil.  For some reason the city planners of Algonquin have not paid any notice to these years’ old paths—they did not make themselves, people walk and ride there, so do them a favor and build a sidewalk. 

            I’ve lived in Amsterdam, Berlin and other German cities, and spent more than enough time in Chicago, and nowhere do I feel more at risk as a pedestrian than in Algonquin.  In Amsterdam, cars drive alongside bikes with only inches separating the two, yet there is little to no danger for either; in Berlin bike lanes are apparent and all respect them; and in all these cities, crosswalks are provided and respected for the pedestrian cross safely. 

            Algonquin needs a change.  More and more bikes will be on the streets for the use of transportation (not to be confused with the after work workout crowd) as gas prices climb and the American public becomes more concerned for the environment and personal health.  Sidewalks need to be completed, bike paths and lanes need to be built, crosswalks painted in at all intersections, and drivers re-educated.  Algonquin can be amongst the leaders issuing in a new era of suburban planning, or it can continue its path as a late-blooming suburb, following the failed path paved by Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg.       

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