New Blog Expounds Joy, and Practicality, of Walking
Writer, Streetsblog reader and contributor Dan Icolari has started a new blog, simply titled "Walking Is Transportation."
A lifelong New Yorker and former motorist, Icolari "hung up his car keys" some time ago. He recounts the experience like a recovering addict describing his moment of clarity.
Like most American drivers, I was convinced my personal mobility--my Freedom, for heaven's sake--depended on the pathetic hunk of steel, plastic and rubber parked outside my door.
I don't recall the specific event that made me decide to pack it in and go carless. What I do recall is the feeling of unease I experienced more and more often behind the wheel--a combination of vulnerability and simmering anger. Finally, owning and driving a car no longer felt like freedom; it felt more and more like a burden.
In the short amount of time since starting the blog (the first post is dated August 6), Icolari has reflected on what it means to be free in a city where so many choose to shackle themselves to the automobile, and what it means to be an "intentional" pedestrian in a society that views walking as a useful means of exercising and meditating, but an eccentric way of getting from one place to another.
Speaking of, about that title -- would the Secretary agree?
Photo: Susan NYC/Flickr
Stay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from Streetsblog New York City
Stockholm Leader’s Message to NYC: ‘Congestion Pricing Just Works’
"In Stockholm, people really thought that congestion pricing would be the end of the world, the city will come to a standstill, no one would be able to get to work anymore and all the theaters and shops would just go bankrupt. None of that happened."
Friday’s Headlines: Trump Trial Trumps Safety Edition
Is anyone going to bother to fix the dangerous mess on the streets and plazas around the Trump trial? Plus more news.
Adams Offers Bare Minimum to Seize Congestion Pricing’s ‘Space Dividend’ Opportunity
The mayor's list of projects supposedly meant to harness congestion pricing's expected reduction in traffic is mostly old news, according to critics.
OPINION: Congestion Pricing Will Help My Family Get Around As We Navigate Cancer Treatment
My partner was recently diagnosed with cancer. Congestion pricing will make getting her to treatment faster and easier.
