Planning Pool

Much is often said about Montreal’s urban successes, however, its suburbs and exurbs are rarely referenced. Pointe-Claire, QC, is about a twenty- to thirty-minute drive from Montreal’s downtown. Its landscape is spread out, dominated by roadways, strip malls and industrial parks, and as a result, is comprised largely of parking lots.

My dad has a tendency to walk extremely fast, so every time I stopped to take a photo he invariably made his way into the shot. All photos by author.

My father wanted to run to a bank machine after we returned from my grandmother’s funeral in Pointe-Claire. This is probably because he needed more cash on hand for the minimum $20 cab fare needed to get, literally, anywhere. Knowing from previous experience how dangerous the walk … Continue Reading

Pedestrians in Manhattan eye the traffic warily and consider jaywalking. Thanks to Oleg Dulin for the great Creative Commons photo.

While Christopher Hume’s article was written in response to the crackdowns on jaywalking following this year’s pedestrian deaths in Toronto, Tom Vanderbilt’s article was actually published about two months prior, in a similar response to the American media’s own shellacking of what were referred to as “foolish” and “lackadaisical” jaywalkers. Clearly, the issue is ongoing. As a matter of fact, the issue of pedestrian rights has been ongoing for quite some time now.

In his 1964 book, The Heart of Our Cities: The Urban Crisis, Diagnosis and Cure, Victor Gruen was responding to these very same concerns when he remarked:
“It is felt … Continue Reading

In Toronto, it is legal to cross a street mid-block as long as you yield to traffic and are not adjacent to a marked pedestrian crossing. Thanks to Nekotune for the great Creative Commons photo!

Early 2010 saw an uncharacteristically high number of pedestrian fatalities in the Greater Toronto Area. After the media storm that ensued, coupled with more pedestrian deaths in other parts of Canada, police crackdowns emerged across the country targeting jaywalkers in Toronto, Ottawa, and Calgary.

Crackdowns on jaywalking are a popular response because they seem to promote safe streets while quelling illegal behavior; above all, they offer the appearance of “doing something”. Unfortunately, publicly addressing what some consider to be reckless behavior on the part of pedestrians … Continue Reading

For this final instalment of FAIL Week, we take a look at a few places that you would never want to set foot in. These cities and neighbourhoods are meant to be experienced in a bucket seat, and it shows!

1. Eagle Bend, Jacksonville, Florida (The entrance has no sidewalk.)

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According to Walkscore.com, this is the least walkable neighbourhood in the least walkable major city in America, which I think is saying quite a bit. They rank areas based on proximity to services, stores and transit –  all of which are next to non-existent in Eagle Bend, earning them a flat zero. Based on the Google Map view, it isn’t difficult to see why. The gated community is adjacent to a river but not any … Continue Reading