Sidewalk blockers just don't think about who they're hurting

Once in a while I get a letter that strikes a nerve. This week it came from George Thompson of Carol Stream.

Imagine, Thompson writes, that it's a beautiful, sunny day and you want to take your mother on a walk in her wheelchair. Or you're a parent heading out with the baby in a stroller. Or a senior trying to get some low-stress exercise because you're not all that steady on your feet.

But "you can't push your mother's wheelchair or your baby stroller on the sidewalk without having to go around parked vehicles blocking the sidewalk. You have to walk in the street or on uneven grass to get around the hulks blocking your path. Some of these metals barricades are in place every day at the same locations as if the owners are flaunting their defiance to village ordinances," Thompson said.

He adds, "why do the owners of two-car garages and double-wide driveways find it necessary to park vehicles so part or all of the sidewalk is blocked?"

What a great question. I ask myself that every winter when I'm walking the dog and have to navigate snow drifts or slush because the neighbor's work trucks block the sidewalk. Though I don't put it so politely.

Thompson worries the Carol Stream police aren't enforcing the law vigorously. The result is, "people pushing baby carriages have to go out on the street. Old folks out on a walk turn around and go back," he said.

For the local perspective, I checked in with Carol Stream police, who said they started a campaign last year to discourage scofflaws and regularly enforce the law prohibiting sidewalk parking.

For the big picture, I turned to Margo O'Hara with the Active Transportation Alliance, a regional advocacy group for pedestrians and cyclists.

"It happens all the time," O'Hara said. "People don't think their neighbors are using sidewalks and don't think it's a big deal." So pedestrians and children riding bikes get pushed onto the street - a dangerous situation, she said.

In reality, "one-third of the population doesn't drive because they're too young or too old, they can't afford it or physically can't drive," O'Hara explained. "Not everyone walks for fun, some people walk to get to work."

To counteract sidewalk blockages in your neighborhood, O'Hara suggests finding out the policy in your community, then civilly letting your local scofflaw know they're not only creating a nuisance but are breaking the law.

If that doesn't work, check with other neighbors and see if they're annoyed with the problem also. Armed with that, you can talk to law enforcement, your city council or village board.

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