Sidewalk Snow Shame: Communities Failing Community 101

We've had a few comments, blogs and opinion pieces shared with Patch since Thursday about an issue many communities are still facing in Northern Virginia: disappearing sidewalks.
They were there on Wednesday — kids used sidewalks to get to school, commuters stood by sidewalks to wait for the bus and your neighbors and mine hiked or biked in safety. Now, for too many, the sidewalks are gone.

What priority should we place on clearing pedestrian and bike paths after a snow? What has your community done to address this issue? Tell us in the comments section below.

I cringed while driving a busy six-lane parkway Friday afternoon when I saw a woman standing on the roadway near where the bus stop used to be — a snow pile had all-but buried the long post for the bus stop sign.

On Saturday, I held my breath as I travelled down a four-lane road near dusk and was met by a woman walking up the street, obviously scared to death, but without an alternative as a large pile of snow roughly her height had replaced the sidewalk.

Driving Monday morning, I noticed how the bike path students use in my neighborhood was unrecognizable. The alternative for children walking to school is the street, at the height of the morning commute.

Many or our sidewalks are a perk in planned neighborhoods, sometimes they were a final demand from local governments, expected to inspire use, but not expected to be used that much. Now, when we need these paths the most, not just to enjoy, but to protect life and limb, they've disappeared.

What priority should we place on clearing pedestrian and bike paths after a snow? What has your community done to address this issue? Tell us in the comments section below.