I need a car for work, along with the majority of people in Saskatchewan.
Before I get my own vehicle, I am restricted to walking around town but even after I do get one, I want to be able to leave the car at home once in a while when getting around town.
Going for groceries, going to work, walks with my boyfriend - I want to be able to rely on human power as much as possible.
Living on the west side of town, there are a lot of places that are only accessible by driving or walking on the highway or through parking lots. The quickest way to get to the Uniplex is making my way over the highway, down the embankment and through the ditch. Kind of hard at night when there is no path, lights and you don’t know what is in the ditch.
Half the time, sure, this is fine for me, a person with no mobility issues, but what about elderly people, families with strollers or people in a wheelchair?
Last night leaving the Uniplex at 9:30 pm, I was not crawling through the ditch to get home.
Getting to Canadian Tire or the Co-op is not any better. It is over a kilometre walk down the highway to the Co-op with no sidewalks or walking trails.
Going east through town, sidewalks end at the campground with some gravel roads running some of the way, which eliminated walking on the highway. East side businesses are more likely to have customers who more than likely have a vehicle, like farmers. Home Hardware, Peavy Mart, Farm World, Jaydee Agtech clientele have little to no accessibility issues and have vehicles to get there but there is still going to be people who would like to walk to places like the SPCA.
When services like grocery stores are inaccessible, like on the west side, this causes a more noticable problem.
Why don’t I just shut up and drive?
Sure, I could because I will eventually have a vehicle but again, it is the people who have to rely on others to take them from point A to point B that this is a problem for.
Some of these people have no way of getting a vehicle or no way of driving a vehicle so they are reliant on friends, relatives, or cabs to take them to these inaccessible places. This can feel very restricting and can be expensive for constant cab users.
Walkability is an important safety factor in a city like Humboldt. Walking on the highway is dangerous for both pedestrians and motorists.
Being safe while walking is a big incentive for leaving the car at home.
Why should we have to rely on vehicles within city limits anyway?
In Saskatchewan, by the end of July 2015, there are over 1.2 million registered vehicles and trailers. With a population of 1.13 million people, that is almost 1 registered vehicle per person and that includes people that don’t even drive, like anyone under the age of 15.
There are many reasons not to drive: getting healthy, saving the environment, saving on fuel costs and wear and tear on your vehicle. But having an accessible city is part of getting people out to experience all these beneficial reasons.
Leaving the car at home should be a valid option when you live in the city. Get out there before the weather turns bad and getting yourself out becomes a little harder.
