Hello again from the USA, as I continue my re-immersion into American life! Some of my recent epic adventures have involved getting around my hometown in North Carolina without the aid of a car, both on foot and by using public transportation. It's funny how one comes to take for granted the simple conveniences of more developed urban areas, especially when one is accustomed to life in European towns and cities. Take sidewalks and pedestrian crosswalks for example; the essentials of modern pedestrian infrastructure. In Germany, I observed these simple conveniences to be both uniformly available and absolutely mandatory. Anyone crazy enough to jaywalk in Germany, for example, risks a run-in with the Polizei as well as the wrath of his fellow citizens. When I was new to Germany and had not yet been properly "Germanized", I sometimes failed to pay proper heed to pedestrian traffic rules when crossing streets. Inevitably, I got more than the occasional earful from elderly Germans who would shout "Hallo, hallo!" while angrily pointing at the "don't walk" signal (or that little red guy). I eventually learned the importance of standing and waiting for the "walk" light before crossing, for however long it took to change, no matter what time of day or night or level of traffic. In time I could be seen at 3:00 AM on a deserted street, with no traffic or life of any kind to be seen, dutifully waiting. I can't count the number of times I missed appointments or had to call my boss, the Mullet Master of Financial Services, to say that I couldn't make it to work because of yet another broken crosswalk light that wouldn't allow me to cross the street (which unfortunately separated me from the workplace). "Pay heed thee evil one", I would say to the steel-haired demon boss through my cell phone, "No evil, and no mullet power of Hell, shall bring me to cross this holy street on red!" It's the principle of the matter, really. And to their credit, the Germans understand the fact that, once people stop respecting pedestrian traffic rules, the whole fabric of society can and will unravel with riots and mayhem as an inevitable consequence.
Now as I attempt to walk from my neighborhood into the center of downtown Asheville, I regret that I don't see as much of my friends, the little "walk" and "don't walk" guys. When I walk through major commercial districts where tens of thousands of people pass through each day in their cars, the sidewalks often seem to have been installed as an afterthought, or as mere architectural flourishes, if at all. Oftentimes I find myself walking on roads' shoulders with cars and SUVs fuming past just inches away, with nothing to walk on but dirt, grass, and discarded McDonald's refuse. Sometimes when I find myself on an actual sidewalk and approach an intersection, where logic would dictate the presence of a crosswalk, I find nothing but a near impenetrable wall of traffic. This is unfortunately more common than not outside of downtown. As a result, pedestrians must navigate some fairly hazardous intersections at their own risk, without so much as the benefit of a painted line. One must often watch the very same traffic lights that drivers follow, and make mad dashes across intersections while the drivers are sitting distracted by red lights. Needless to say, this can be quite dangerous at larger intersections and where drivers aren't accustomed to watching for pedestrians (which is most places, most of the time). It occurred to me on one such occasion recently that when I was a kid, I actually assumed that it was illegal to cross such streets, as the city planners obviously hadn't intended for people to cross without a car. I would cross such streets in fear of both the traffic and the police. I'm encouraged now to see that more sidewalks and crosswalks exist around Asheville than were here when I first moved away, but there's still a disappointing lack of progress toward what I will call "Universal Pedestrian Rights".
The exception is in the downtown historic and commercial districts, where tourists spend most of their time (and money). The downtown area is immensely popular with tourists, and little expense has been spared in improvements there for their sake. Don't get me wrong, I think it's good to attract some tourists. They bring money to the local economy, and downtown has received quite a facelift in recent years. But in the end it seems that the majority of the existing and permanent population here (most of whom live around the rural fringes of town) is neglected, while the local city government does everything it can to attract more tourist dollars and wealthy retirees. Asheville is, and has always been home to people of all socioeconomic stripes, most of whom are at the lower to middle end of the income scale. Median income for Asheville in 2007 was $37,000 annually (as opposed to $45,000 statewide). At the same time, the median house/condo value in Asheville was $198,000 (as opposed to $146,000 statewide). Yes, that's still pretty cheap to a lot of people, but keep things in perspective. The job market in Asheville stinks. It often seems like the only lucrative occupation in Asheville is retiree. Otherwise, people here work in service and healthcare industries that support the retirees and the tourists. Coupled with this absence of job market diversity is a disproportionately high cost of living. Building new, gated communities for a minority of wealthy transplants in the midst of a traditionally less-than-wealthy majority has the effect of increasing the costs of food and services for everyone. But I'm off on a tangent here. . .What I'm getting at is this: To our fearless leaders in municipal government, don't give Asheville another Starbucks. Give Asheville sidewalks, crosswalks, and things that really strengthen a community. It's time for cities here and all over America to remember the forgotten, downtrodden, and aboriginal casualty of urban life: The pedestrian.
So I got tired of dodging traffic as a pedestrian. Somehow during my time in Europe I came to take for granted that drivers would usually stop and yield the right-of-way, as it's understood that pedestrians have just as much right to occupy the street as they do, car or no car. I think the laws are about the same here in North Carolina, right? But after a couple of close calls recently, in which I was nearly run over at cross walks by drivers of Cadillacs from Florida, who seemed not to acknowledge my existence, I decided to try other means of transportation.
My next epic adventure involved a ride into downtown Asheville on the city bus. Okay, it might seem mundane to some. But after being accustomed to the mass transit systems in Germany, the local bus system here makes for an interesting comparison. As some may know, I spent most of my life before moving to Garmisch, Germany in Asheville, NC, or 17 years to be exact. During those 17 years, I rode the city bus exactly one time. This was partly because most people here rely exclusively on cars for getting around, especially in rural parts like where I grew up. But more importantly, riding the city bus was just lame. Even if there was a bus stop just inches away, nobody that I knew ever rode the bus, and to do so was considered unthinkable. My family and most of the families I knew where not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination. But to rely on the city bus was, to me and my friends and acquaintances, a sign of utter destitution. It was a well known fact that riding the bus could lead to a downward spiral to complete ruin. One day you would be riding the city bus, and the next you would be sleeping on a bus bench, covered with newspapers, and drinking a 40 Oz bottle of King Cobra from a paper bag for breakfast. So, for those of us still too young to drive, when given the choice between riding and walking for hours to get some place, we walked. In doing so, we avoided certain social death and complete alcoholic ruin. Needless to say, the one experience I had riding the bus at the age of 15 has been a dark, horrible secret that I've kept hidden from the world until now. It was a confused phase in my life during which I failed to understand the consequences my decisions. Yes, I once rode the Asheville city bus before I was old enough to drive! I apologize to my family and friends for the pain this revelation may cause. I hope I will not be judged too harshly, and I hope that my cool card will not be permanently revoked.
But as I get older, I become less concerned with image (which is convenient, because age also brings with it the realization that I might not be as cool as I once thought). It was with this new maturity that I embarked one afternoon last week for an appointment with destiny: I went to catch the bus going downtown. All I had to do was walk two miles to the closest bus stop, which brings me back to the interesting comparisons to be made between Asheville's and Garmisch's bus systems. A notable difference is the fact that no bus schedules are ever posted at the bus stops here. So I stood there for a while at the bus stop, which was actually no more than a rectangular sign bolted to a post on the side of the road. There was no bench, not even a curb to sit on. As I stood at the bus stop contemplating how long I might wait (one hour, two? I had no idea), I saw a teenaged girl walk out of her front door and onto a porch across the street. I asked her, "how often does the bus come through here?" With an apologetic shrug of her shoulders she said "I have no idea", and continued talking on her cordless phone, presumably about ". . .like, this homeless-bus-rider-type of guy who's totally out in front of the house at, like, that creepy bus stop thingy. You know, I bet he's totally on his way to score some Boone's Farm!" I walked a little ways further down the street until I saw a woman checking her mailbox, smoking a cigarette. "Do you know when the bus comes through here?" I asked. She seemed a bit confused, and I believe it took her a minute to recall that there is indeed a bus stop ten feet from her mailbox. "Oh, yeah. You know, my daughter came home from college one time to visit, and she tried to ride that bus. . .hmm. . .I think I've seen it before, because I always come out here to smoke. I never smoke inside the house", she assured me for some reason, "But maybe it comes at a quarter 'till the hour." Her daughter was obviously quite the radical, but I couldn't tell for sure if she had actually succeeded in finding the elusive bus. Perhaps the bus was more of a local legend, whispered about over fence tops between superstitious neighbors, but never actually seen in real life. My phone's clock read a quarter past the hour. So I continued on, prepared to walk miles to the nearest internet cafe. Luckily I was only a couple of hundred feet down the road when the bus pulled up. As I ran back, the woman also ran back down her driveway, waiving her arms and yelling at the driver, pointing in my direction with the cigarette in her hand. I wonder if the driver was freaked out, having seen so few people ever actually needing him to stop.
Considering how little the buses seem to be used in relation to the population density here, bus services turned out to be fairly cheap. A one-time ride costs $1, and an annual pass for Asheville and the surrounding area costs $120. The only problem is that the last bus going back to my part of town leaves the downtown transit station at 6:00 PM. There is an actual "night bus", but the last "night bus" leaves downtown at 8:30 PM, and still leaves me no closer to home than 45 minutes by foot. Speaking of which, I need to catch that bus because it's leaving soon.
More later. . .
Now as I attempt to walk from my neighborhood into the center of downtown Asheville, I regret that I don't see as much of my friends, the little "walk" and "don't walk" guys. When I walk through major commercial districts where tens of thousands of people pass through each day in their cars, the sidewalks often seem to have been installed as an afterthought, or as mere architectural flourishes, if at all. Oftentimes I find myself walking on roads' shoulders with cars and SUVs fuming past just inches away, with nothing to walk on but dirt, grass, and discarded McDonald's refuse. Sometimes when I find myself on an actual sidewalk and approach an intersection, where logic would dictate the presence of a crosswalk, I find nothing but a near impenetrable wall of traffic. This is unfortunately more common than not outside of downtown. As a result, pedestrians must navigate some fairly hazardous intersections at their own risk, without so much as the benefit of a painted line. One must often watch the very same traffic lights that drivers follow, and make mad dashes across intersections while the drivers are sitting distracted by red lights. Needless to say, this can be quite dangerous at larger intersections and where drivers aren't accustomed to watching for pedestrians (which is most places, most of the time). It occurred to me on one such occasion recently that when I was a kid, I actually assumed that it was illegal to cross such streets, as the city planners obviously hadn't intended for people to cross without a car. I would cross such streets in fear of both the traffic and the police. I'm encouraged now to see that more sidewalks and crosswalks exist around Asheville than were here when I first moved away, but there's still a disappointing lack of progress toward what I will call "Universal Pedestrian Rights".
The exception is in the downtown historic and commercial districts, where tourists spend most of their time (and money). The downtown area is immensely popular with tourists, and little expense has been spared in improvements there for their sake. Don't get me wrong, I think it's good to attract some tourists. They bring money to the local economy, and downtown has received quite a facelift in recent years. But in the end it seems that the majority of the existing and permanent population here (most of whom live around the rural fringes of town) is neglected, while the local city government does everything it can to attract more tourist dollars and wealthy retirees. Asheville is, and has always been home to people of all socioeconomic stripes, most of whom are at the lower to middle end of the income scale. Median income for Asheville in 2007 was $37,000 annually (as opposed to $45,000 statewide). At the same time, the median house/condo value in Asheville was $198,000 (as opposed to $146,000 statewide). Yes, that's still pretty cheap to a lot of people, but keep things in perspective. The job market in Asheville stinks. It often seems like the only lucrative occupation in Asheville is retiree. Otherwise, people here work in service and healthcare industries that support the retirees and the tourists. Coupled with this absence of job market diversity is a disproportionately high cost of living. Building new, gated communities for a minority of wealthy transplants in the midst of a traditionally less-than-wealthy majority has the effect of increasing the costs of food and services for everyone. But I'm off on a tangent here. . .What I'm getting at is this: To our fearless leaders in municipal government, don't give Asheville another Starbucks. Give Asheville sidewalks, crosswalks, and things that really strengthen a community. It's time for cities here and all over America to remember the forgotten, downtrodden, and aboriginal casualty of urban life: The pedestrian.
So I got tired of dodging traffic as a pedestrian. Somehow during my time in Europe I came to take for granted that drivers would usually stop and yield the right-of-way, as it's understood that pedestrians have just as much right to occupy the street as they do, car or no car. I think the laws are about the same here in North Carolina, right? But after a couple of close calls recently, in which I was nearly run over at cross walks by drivers of Cadillacs from Florida, who seemed not to acknowledge my existence, I decided to try other means of transportation.
My next epic adventure involved a ride into downtown Asheville on the city bus. Okay, it might seem mundane to some. But after being accustomed to the mass transit systems in Germany, the local bus system here makes for an interesting comparison. As some may know, I spent most of my life before moving to Garmisch, Germany in Asheville, NC, or 17 years to be exact. During those 17 years, I rode the city bus exactly one time. This was partly because most people here rely exclusively on cars for getting around, especially in rural parts like where I grew up. But more importantly, riding the city bus was just lame. Even if there was a bus stop just inches away, nobody that I knew ever rode the bus, and to do so was considered unthinkable. My family and most of the families I knew where not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination. But to rely on the city bus was, to me and my friends and acquaintances, a sign of utter destitution. It was a well known fact that riding the bus could lead to a downward spiral to complete ruin. One day you would be riding the city bus, and the next you would be sleeping on a bus bench, covered with newspapers, and drinking a 40 Oz bottle of King Cobra from a paper bag for breakfast. So, for those of us still too young to drive, when given the choice between riding and walking for hours to get some place, we walked. In doing so, we avoided certain social death and complete alcoholic ruin. Needless to say, the one experience I had riding the bus at the age of 15 has been a dark, horrible secret that I've kept hidden from the world until now. It was a confused phase in my life during which I failed to understand the consequences my decisions. Yes, I once rode the Asheville city bus before I was old enough to drive! I apologize to my family and friends for the pain this revelation may cause. I hope I will not be judged too harshly, and I hope that my cool card will not be permanently revoked.
But as I get older, I become less concerned with image (which is convenient, because age also brings with it the realization that I might not be as cool as I once thought). It was with this new maturity that I embarked one afternoon last week for an appointment with destiny: I went to catch the bus going downtown. All I had to do was walk two miles to the closest bus stop, which brings me back to the interesting comparisons to be made between Asheville's and Garmisch's bus systems. A notable difference is the fact that no bus schedules are ever posted at the bus stops here. So I stood there for a while at the bus stop, which was actually no more than a rectangular sign bolted to a post on the side of the road. There was no bench, not even a curb to sit on. As I stood at the bus stop contemplating how long I might wait (one hour, two? I had no idea), I saw a teenaged girl walk out of her front door and onto a porch across the street. I asked her, "how often does the bus come through here?" With an apologetic shrug of her shoulders she said "I have no idea", and continued talking on her cordless phone, presumably about ". . .like, this homeless-bus-rider-type of guy who's totally out in front of the house at, like, that creepy bus stop thingy. You know, I bet he's totally on his way to score some Boone's Farm!" I walked a little ways further down the street until I saw a woman checking her mailbox, smoking a cigarette. "Do you know when the bus comes through here?" I asked. She seemed a bit confused, and I believe it took her a minute to recall that there is indeed a bus stop ten feet from her mailbox. "Oh, yeah. You know, my daughter came home from college one time to visit, and she tried to ride that bus. . .hmm. . .I think I've seen it before, because I always come out here to smoke. I never smoke inside the house", she assured me for some reason, "But maybe it comes at a quarter 'till the hour." Her daughter was obviously quite the radical, but I couldn't tell for sure if she had actually succeeded in finding the elusive bus. Perhaps the bus was more of a local legend, whispered about over fence tops between superstitious neighbors, but never actually seen in real life. My phone's clock read a quarter past the hour. So I continued on, prepared to walk miles to the nearest internet cafe. Luckily I was only a couple of hundred feet down the road when the bus pulled up. As I ran back, the woman also ran back down her driveway, waiving her arms and yelling at the driver, pointing in my direction with the cigarette in her hand. I wonder if the driver was freaked out, having seen so few people ever actually needing him to stop.
Considering how little the buses seem to be used in relation to the population density here, bus services turned out to be fairly cheap. A one-time ride costs $1, and an annual pass for Asheville and the surrounding area costs $120. The only problem is that the last bus going back to my part of town leaves the downtown transit station at 6:00 PM. There is an actual "night bus", but the last "night bus" leaves downtown at 8:30 PM, and still leaves me no closer to home than 45 minutes by foot. Speaking of which, I need to catch that bus because it's leaving soon.
More later. . .
