Upholding democracy in public spaces

I have been thinking a lot about democracy lately and how important it is to a productive, safe and civil society. We are living in a time of incredible change, and how we choose to respond will determine our ultimate success or failure.

I can pontificate on the many winds of change from the invasion of Ukraine to housing to inflation, but focusing on places where we can make an immediate and meaningful difference, right now is best. Before I jump in on details of the place where each of us can support democracy and positive outcomes for ourselves, our families and our community, I issue this promise: It isn’t as boring as it sounds.

Of all the places where we come together as a society, our public rightsof-way have some of the most profound impact on our lives, every day, every year, every lifetime. Yep, that’s right, roads, trails, bridges, bike lines, crosswalks and sidewalks. They account for the greatest percentage of publicly owned or managed space in the region and outside of the Western U.S., in most places. The Lehigh Valley hosts 4,143 miles of roads, 2,077 miles of sidewalks and 300 miles of trails.

Not only are they critical for mobility, the economy, quality of life, recreation and public health, but as a region, we are judged by them. People and businesses locate, stay and expand here because of them, and too often we use them without thinking about what it takes to maintain and enhance them. They are investments in our present and our future. As a society, we should think about them as the fundamental assets they are and how foundational they are to decisions we make every single day and that underpin our democracy.

I live in a rural portion of the region, but frequent every form of community, including our cities, in the region, and I work in a suburban office park near the Lehigh Valley International Airport. When I’m at home, I enjoy walking a four-mile loop through the countryside, looking for hawks, checking the progress of the crops in the fields, recognizing the change of seasons by the colors of the Blue Mountain, talking with our neighbors, and hoping for a sighting of the elusive mink near the headwaters of the Jordan Creek.

My husband and I walk in the road that we share with cars, delivery vans, all measure of farm equipment, cyclists, kids on dirt bikes and four-wheelers, and other walkers. We’ll sometimes encounter peacocks, guinea hens, goats and groundhogs. Every animal, person and their mobility devices use the same space, and when a large combine rolls down the one-and-half lane wide cartway as it moves from field to field during harvest, cars get over, hug the shoulderless edges of the road, and everyone waves or nods in appreciation of the role we each play and the beauty of the place. It’s largely peaceful, grateful, respectful and it’s very democratic.

Go to any of the cities and many of our boroughs and there are people walking, biking and rolling along. It’s stop-and-go for everyone and there are generally good sidewalk networks, acceptable crosswalks and vehicle control devices like stop signs and traffic lights to organize the space and make it safer. You have drivers that act badly here and there, but overall there is a recognition, much like in the country, that a lot is happening here, and the public space is shared and ultimately democratically managed.

When I’m at the LVIP III office and industrial park, there is a marked difference. People arrive to the development by bus, bike and car, like the cities and boroughs. At lunch, many people walk along the edges of the streets, that do not have sidewalks, like the country. I’ll reserve comment on the necessity of suburban sidewalks and adequate bus facilities for another day, but cars, vans and trucks routinely speeding well above the posted 35 mph speed limit. Our traffic counts show that roughly 20 percent of the more than 7,700 daily vehicles are 10-15 mph over the speed limit. Last Tuesday, several were clocked in the 70s.

Cars regularly tailgate other cars and trucks, and even illegally drive around them. Postal Road has become more of a motor speedway than a suburban commercial street. And it does not elude me that the road is aptly named for the way too many people drive on it. Irrationally and without regard for human life. Crazy, really. It’s terrifying for those walking, waiting for the bus ... and even tractor-trailers, the “apex predator” of vehicles, have a hard time pulling out of manufacturing and logistics properties.

Not in all cases, but in most, it’s passenger vehicles driving a lone drag race like it’s the California Salt Flats. No one is setting a land speed record here, so slow down and remember we all have people to see and things to do that don’t involve damaging property, wrecking vehicles,

injuring or killing others. It’s a driver behavior problem more than anything, not a pedestrian, cyclist or truck problem. It is a series of personal choices made by vehicle drivers to violate traffic laws and endanger the public health, safety and welfare.

To solve it requires taking personal responsibility and a commitment to yourself, family and community. They aren’t separate. A democracy where we all have a reasonable chance, and even expectation, to make it home safely utilizing the equally apportioned public rights-of-way on which we all rely.

You — yeah, you — can do better. We as a community can do better too, by not mimicking bad behavior, by being mindful that our region’s value is underpinned by its public assets, including its infrastructure, and by realizing that acting foolish undermines everyone’s future, including your own.