A Cityscape to Forget

What exactly are cities designed for? Are they designed for cars? Are they designed for bikes? Are they designed for people? Are they even designed? It is a damned shame how hideously ugly our cities are becoming. The spiritless sprall that lines the pockets of heartless developers is repugnant. Cities are obviously not designed for people, but rather are a nesting place for obesity and other disgusting behaviour.

I recently heard an anecdote that I can not back up, but is not at all shocking to me. It is from the U.S., but I think it pertinent to our Canadian situation. It was about a new shopping mall that made the disasterous mistake of putting the parking lot too far away from the mall. People, needless to say, did not flock. So they put the parking lot closer and people were happy to patronize the mall.

This is what is disgusting to me. Our cities are not designed to walk anywhere. They are totally designed for cars. Malls and blocks stores should be banned, and each neighbourhood should have its own collection of shops that are within walking distance. I know what you are saying: "but Joe, how can I watch an average of 4 hours of television and walk to the grocery store in the same day?" Here is my answer: cut out an hour of TV and get some exercise.

I kid, of course. People might walk away from their televisions more often if there were stores within walking distance, but sadly there aren't in most neighbourhoods. Perhaps one day we will come to our senses and start making cities that are people, not car, friendly. And we can regain a sense of pride that our city has a soul, not just an expressway. I can hope.