 Proponents Should Take It to the Streets... "Pin It")
COMMENT OF THE DAY: HOW HOUSTON’S PARK(ING) PROPONENTS SHOULD TAKE IT TO THE STREETS 
“While I understand, generally, the sentiment behind this initiative, I think in Houston it may be a little misguided. If we want a more walkable environment, with fewer buildings set back behind parking lots, we actually need more on-street parking spaces (to both accommodate business patrons arriving by car and help buffer pedestrians on the sidewalk), and fewer off-street ones.” [LocalPlanner, commenting on The SUV-Sized Parks Parked By City Hall Will Expire in About An Hour] Photo of Park(ing) Day: Allyn West
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On street parking is a hazard to cycling.
Only when cyclists and drivers don’t obey TX DPS rules of the road. On any roadway less than 12-ft in width (i.e. basically every street with on-street parking), cyclists should take the entire lane and be treated as a moving vehicle. Parking requirements should not be developed on the basis of citizens not following the rules.
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But noted that obeying the rules is an abstract thing. You’d have to be an idiot to expect Houstonians and the cops to safeguard and protect those rules/your safety.
There’s no point talking about making Houston a walkable city unless we talk about burying the utility lines that clutter up the skyline and whose poles are smack in the middle of every sidewalk in the city. Not only is it impossible for someone in a wheelchair to get around them, it makes walking itself nearly impossible. Why is this always absent from the discussions about walkability? I challenge anyone to find a city considered walkable and attractive that has power lines strung all over God’s little concrete acre.
@Chris, Worth noting that many parts of this city would love to have sidewalks with utility poles in them, or any sidewalks really. Discussing walkability issues in Houston requires a thesis of 1k pages, minimum.
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Also, Tokyo. Japan’s birds nest of overhead power lines are a classic part of the scenery.
Tokyo
exactly right
I’ll second the Tokyo comment. Virtually anywhere in Japan