Seeing another fatal crash on Hartford’s dangerous New Britain Avenue reminded me that our history of designing Connecticut cities for the throughput of suburban car traffic degrades public safety and neighborhood quality of life. At the same time, that car-centric approach increases urban air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, not to mention irritating noise pollution. As I wander cross country on my bicycle, I’m finding other cities have made major investments in cross-city, safe multiuse trails and bicycle routes. Most of these cities would not yet call themselves a panacea for biking or wallking, but the cross-city routes do get well used.
