Working for Strong Towns Made Me a Better Driver (and Cyclist and Pedestrian)
Like most people drawn to Strong Towns — in my case, first as a member and now as a staff writer — I was attuned to the deficiencies in the built environment and the hazards they present. But my time working here and writing about these issues has substantially increased my focus on all people sharing these spaces and, more importantly, changed my behavior. Part of this is basic empathy, but another aspect is pragmatic: Those of us advocating for change, especially for more human-powered infrastructure, need to show that we will use it and that it will bring the promised benefits.
I have a good record of driving safely with respect for other road users, but now I tend to channel everyone else I encounter from behind the wheel, as well. Take those bike lanes on the sides of stroads, or sharrows that presume a small symbol painted on the road will actually affect a driver’s conduct. I’m now inside the head of the cyclist as they think, “I’m forced to ride here, and every approaching car is a menace.” So I do what I can to convey that I am not that threat. I always pass widely and in places where riders would have no reason to veer. If I’m making a right turn in less than a block, I’ll tuck in far enough behind to not be threatening. And if cyclists are riding far from the curb, I figure there’s some debris in the bike lane.
I also pay attention to design speed (tell me you’re a Strong Towns supporter without using those two words), and modulate my driving accordingly. Where I live in Sarasota County, Florida, roads are often flat and straight, providing almost no visual cues to drive at or near the posted speed. But I do it anyway, pondering the plight of the kid who needs to cross to get to the soccer field or a sandhill crane getting to a pond.
There is more than one roadside memorial on my area’s main stroad (U.S. Route 41), so I’m fastidious about stopping before the sidewalk when I leave a shopping strip and scanning it carefully when I turn in.
In my own cycling, I admit to taking some liberties, but I’m careful not to impede cars or pedestrians when I do. So much opposition to expanding cycling infrastructure and safety takes the form of “those ruffian cyclists don’t deserve it!” Instead, I want drivers to think that the more people ride instead of drive, the more free roadway capacity they get, so cyclists are actually giving them a tax break.
My town has a quirky design of triangular intersections with pocket parks, resulting in some strange pedestrian pathways. I always use the crosswalks, even if they go slightly out of my way, because this is a very pedestrian-friendly design and cars behave better when walkers are predictable. On the other extreme, I’m now downright scared when I cross my local stroad, knowing that even with a green light and walk signal, I’m a vulnerable user in a dangerous design.
I take this empathy in the other direction, too. Every time I return to Washington, DC, where I lived until 2015, there are more bike lanes replacing car lanes, added stop signs, and much longer pedestrian intervals at intersections. All of which I’m completely in favor of (and kind of bitter that it's only happening years after I was a biking/walking/skating commuter there). But to show some sympathy for the drivers, I’m careful not to impede them when they have the legal right of way, both out of respect and to not create unhelpful opposition in a place that’s largely making changes that deprioritize them.
This fits with the Strong Towns theme of humbly observing where people are struggling and doing the next smallest thing to fix it. Everyone in a badly built place — whether they're in a car, on foot or on two wheels — is struggling. And no change is cheaper than behaving in a way that helps everyone get home safely.
Has your exposure to Strong Towns changed how you see and behave in the built environment? Tell us about it in a comment below or on our social channels. And if you haven’t yet, become a member. You have the power to make things better.
Strong Towns is a member-supported nonprofit that gives local leaders, technical professionals and involved residents the insights to make their communities strong and financially resilient. You can support this work by becoming a member today.
Ben Abramson is a Staff Writer at Strong Towns. In his career as a travel journalist with The Washington Post and USA TODAY, Ben has visited many destinations that show how Americans were once world-class at building appealing, prosperous places at a human scale. He has also seen the worst of the suburban development pattern, and joined Strong Towns because of its unique way of framing the problems we can all see and intuit, and focusing on local, achievable solutions. A native of Washington, DC, Ben lives in Venice, Florida; summers in Atlantic Canada; and loves hiking, biking, kayaking, and beachcombing.