All you walkers out there, this is for you.
Have you ever wondered why the word pedestrian (in its definition as “commonplace, unimaginative,” also thought to mean ordinary, boring) is attached to walking? It’s really (linguistically) about our feet, or literally, going on foot, ped in Latin. We walk either because we delight in it, or because shanks mare (as it was once known) is our only means of transportation, or both. Hardly ordinary or boring.
Snarky rant alert: Walkers, of all people, know that motorized vehicles and drivers sitting in cars and trucks rule the roads. Now that’s ordinary — and boring, which is why some of those drivers are distracted and on phones or screens, despite the law. And now we have so-called E-bikes that can go more than 20 mph on the so-called bike paths — trails that were designed for walkers as well as bikes.
Let’s begin with the big plus. If you walk even a little, you know. Walking is healthful. A vigorous walk is more healthful than a slow one, but getting up out of your chair and heading out the door has medical benefits that help counteract a sedentary lifestyle. The activity is good for your heart, helps you avoid weight gain and diabetes, and breathe fresh air (if you can avoid motorized traffic, especially black smoke wafting from dump trucks).
You are going slowly enough to take in all the sights. Beauties of nature, mountain views, makes of cars… etc. Also consider the wonderful fellow walkers you may meet. It’s so rare to say hello, good morning to another human, perhaps a dog walker? Commenting on how handsome their canine is? (He’s friendly — No! don’t jump!)
Hmm. Maybe that last plus can turn out to be a minus.
Not counting ice and snow, and the need for grippers, which we trust will be mostly gone with spring, the dangers begin with motor vehicles — especially speeding motor vehicles. A 25 mph speed limit — frequent in populous neighborhoods — is almost never observed. You’ll get tail-gated, maybe even honked at if you obey. I know because I do also drive and observe the limit. Most drivers do at least 30 in such zones, but many go much faster. And it seems the police are too busy nabbing motorists weaving or doing 100 or not stopping for stopped school buses to worry about “relatively” minor infractions.
Speeders are equally dangerous to cyclists. But even normal cyclists can endanger walkers.
Walkers should also, of course, be polite and hug the side of the path or road. That’s even though now in Massachusetts there’s a law (passed in 2023) requiring drivers to give cyclists, pedestrians and other “vulnerable road users” (people in wheelchairs, skateboarders and scooter riders, and road workers) “at least 4 feet of clearance, plus additional space if traveling at higher speeds or if conditions are hazardous.” That word vulnerable comes from the Latin vulnus, wound. Because that’s what would occur if a car or truck or even a bicycle hits anyone in that above-mentioned group. Or worse.
To observe the law, motorists can cross the double lines in the center of the road if it’s safe to do so. Otherwise they must remain behind the “vulnerable” (not too close) until it’s safe to pass. Of course, that means they have to slow way down.
This law is frequently ignored, as are crosswalks, even those with twinkling lights and a voice (“warning lights are flashing”).
Better observed, perhaps, is the Move Over law (passed in 2009 in Massachusetts and now in almost every state) requiring drivers while passing a stopped police, emergency or highway vehicle with flashing lights to pull a whole lane over if possible or if not to stop or slow way down. Even so, workers and officers have been injured and killed by drivers who ignored the law.
If you’re a walker, you’re safer off the roads. A stroll in the woods is lovely, but uneven ground doesn’t work for all walkers. Stay on sidewalks if available, but watch out for cyclists who are also trying to avoid the roads!
Walking or biking at night is of course extremely dangerous. Walkers and cyclists need to be highly visible. Lights help. Be alert, and remember what Mick Jagger said at the end of “Between the Buttons” — “So if you’re out at night, don’t forget, if you’re on your bike wear white.” Mick’s advice applies equally well to walking at twilight or in the evening, especially crossing the street. Don’t wear that all-black outfit. You can’t be seen.
Walkies, anyone? You’ll be eager as a pup.
Ellie Cook is a former Gazette staffer who wrote a column called “Walking the Beat.” She lives in Northampton.