Walking is top of the urban transport hierarchy. In 2007 the Manual for Streets recommended “applying a user hierarchy to the design process with pedestrians at the top”. But when it comes to seasonal maintenance, pedestrians in Durham often find themselves at the bottom. One of the pleasures of Durham is abundance of trees, but in the autumn this results in an abundance of leaves on the ground. Passing cars blow the leaves up into the air again, and any that settle on the footway instead of the carriageway tend to stay there. It does not take long for all the leaves to end up on the pavement, where they get trodden down into a slimy mush. Then, before the council clear them, we get a layer of snow! The road gets gritted, but the pavement does not. In these circumstances it is often safer to walk on the carriageway.
We have featured Quarryheads Lane twice recently, and here it is again. There is only one narrow pavement, and when it rains, a long stream of water forms a foot or two out from the kerb. The drains to take the water underground are very widely spaced. The result is that pedestrians have to tread carefully, to avoid slipping on the iced-over slimy leaf mush, and are always at risk of being drenched by passing cars.
Top of the urban transport hierarchy? Pull the other one!
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