I’ve parked my bike in a different spot the last few days. In a nod to the daily forecast for thunderstorms, I’ve eschewed the bike rack I fought so hard for to park under the staircase overpass. I’ve also noticed there’s only one bike there chained to the overpass fence; there used to be four or so bikes, which was what initially prompted me to pester Town Hall for the bike rack.
Anyway, while parking in the new spot, I’ve noticed a white painted crosswalk spanning from the crummy old station house across the station byway, to the greenery bordering Elwood Ave. on the other side. I even saw a pylon informing motorists to let pedestrians pass under state law.
I’m fairly certain I’ve never seen this before. If so, kudos to Mount Pleasant for showing bipedals the love. Whether motorists will or not is to be determined.
By the way, dedicated Trainjotting readers (Hi Mom!) may have noticed that I’ve stopped referring to Hawthorne as “Hummerville” and Pleasantville as “Priusville.” This is due primarily to one thing: We had our home appraised for refi purposes, and the appraisor was a man from Pleasantville who parked his big honkin’ Hummer in front of our house.
Moreover, I no longer see the 2-3 Hummers that once dotted–OK, dominated–my immediate neighborhood, surely victims of those escalating gas prices last summer. I’ve even seen a few Priuses around little Hawthorne.
“Priusville” worked as a stand-in for Pleasantville because Pleasantville is crunchy and artsy–a little slice of Boulder/Burlington along the Saw Mill. That, and we see a red Prius every time me and Little G visit his beloved Dump Truck Playground.
“Hummerville” was always intended not so much as a characterization of Hawthorne residents’ love of ridiculous former military vehicles, but a general label for the suburbs–where the car is king, and pedestrians (and cyclists) took an, um, back seat to automobiles.
But that’s all changed now that we have a pedestrian crosswalk.
Don’t call me Mom!