As a non-driver who lives in the city, it’s a bittersweet schadenfreude to see so many people deeply shaken by the traffic situation after a day of high profile events. I felt it. It was one of the busiest days in the city and probably the busiest day of the year. However, we were all forewarned by traffic authorities about heavy congestion and road closures. Traffic authorities are communicating extensively on various platforms about everything that is happening, including common sense, and there was still incredible traffic (“Saturday traffic”) Downtown traffic is a wake-up call for Baltimore drivers,” Oct. 10.
But for many of us, urban congestion caused by unnecessary over-reliance on cars is something we have to endure at all costs. My almost daily “passeggiata,” a leisurely walk that’s the best way to clear my head after a mentally taxing day at work, is the best way to clear my head after a mentally taxing day at work. A cacophony of noise and grotesque noises is interrupted by the sound of a car crashing. For a subsidized suburban lifestyle. This city, state, and country chooses to drive and take up excessive space for oversized luxuries that most of us living in Baltimore are unable or choose not to use. A constant reminder of how we continue to prioritize people.
Highways and elevated highways divide neighborhoods and communities, increase children’s risk of developing asthma and other respiratory diseases, contribute significantly to noise pollution, and encourage behaviors that exacerbate climate change and environmental degradation. For those who don’t, it’s dangerous. They drive cars and rely on human-scale mobility and public transportation. Of course, these effects are amplified by existing structural inequalities along race, disability, gender, and class lines.
It is of utmost importance that the City of Baltimore and the State of Maryland recognize the fact that over-reliance on automobiles is dramatically deteriorating the city. We must take steps to improve human-scale mobility, including improving and widening sidewalks, creating protected travel lanes, and investing heavily in bike-sharing infrastructure. At the same time, we need to upgrade our light rail fleet and build the Red Line, complementing them with protected dedicated bus lanes and additional bus lanes for our bus network. This is a comprehensive route, but severely lacking in frequency and capacity.
Baltimore’s transit system is quite flawed, but the bones of a great system are definitely there. We can make Baltimore a city with human-scale mobility, comprehensive public transportation, and safe, accessible roads. Baltimore is a relatively compact, affordable, and climate-resilient city compared to many cities on the East Coast and South. We need to leverage these advantages to remain competitive and build truly “car-lite” cities, even post-car cities, that are accessible to people who don’t have cars but need an affordable place to live. there is.
Last Saturday night was a reminder that cars are incompatible with vibrant, dynamic cities and a high quality of urban life. I hope those who drove the cars realize their mistake and advocate for improved public transport across the city and region, rather than continued car dependency and all the negatives that come with it. Baltimore deserves better than what we chose and what was foisted on us. It’s time for us to work to change that for the better.
— Isaac Leal, Baltimore
Add your voice: Reply to this article or other Sun content. submit your own letter.