I support efforts by Assembly members to loosen restrictions on walkers and bikers in Anchorage.I’ve been knocked down by one driver and my bike collided with a car driven by another at an intersection. Drivers often don’t watch where they’re going because they assume no one walks or rides bikes.
I tried tapping the windshields of drivers when they focus only on incoming traffic, but they complain I have no right to touch their property. One ordered me not to yell at him when he drove right at me in one intersection. Apparently he valued his feelings more than my safety.
Crossing in the middle of blocks is often safer than at intersections. I only have to look two ways.
When I related such incidents on my Daily News blog years ago, some readers were supportive — of drivers who don’t watch where they’re driving. One reader considered tapping a car as physically abusing it and another held me responsible for ensuring there are no cars on the road before crossing the street. Try that during business hours in Midtown.
Walking and biking are rights. Driving a car on city streets is a privilege. Our ordinances should reflect that.
— Geoff Kennedy
Anchorage
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