Under normal conditions, in which areas in a small-to-moderately-sized city do you least like to drive?

i guess industrial areas because of work traffic etc...... but no other area bothers me

For my money, college campuses are the worst. You would think the average college student would be old enough and smart enough to stop and look both ways before stepping into the street, but you would be wrong.

Once a week, I pick up specimens from the student clinic at Old Dominion University. The students just kind of wander off the sidewalks into the street without a pause or a glance. Wednesday night, I was stopped at a crosswalk to let a group of students cross. Just as I was about to proceed, I noticed a guy on a skateboard texting on his cellphone. Same deal, he never lifted his head, just zoomed out into the street without even pausing his fingers on the keypad.

I don't drive but if I did I think I'd hate the more densely populated areas most, like the shopping district/downtown worst, then school zones, then college campuses, then residential, then port, then industrial because of all the stop-and-go and watching out for walkers that drivers must look out for.

1. Industrial
2. University
3. Residential
4. School
5. Terminal
6. Downtown

I do not drive in some cities and neighborhoods, because they are crime ridden..any part of them..

I don't drive and our cities aren't really structured like this anyway.

I don't drive so I answered as a passenger.

Downtown shopping areas are the worst. Then port or terminal areas. The others don't matter at all.

All driving at night in strange places is stressful to me. I hate it.

Depends on if I'm in a car or (as usual) on my bike.

Shopping districts are no fun in cars minding pedestrians but cool on a bike where I can peer into any interesting shops.

I like green open spaces and intersting ecclectic stuff. I care less for residences that all look the same, unless it's a neighborhood I haven't seen or it has nice gardens.

They may not own cars, and see the college as their turf where they, the pedestrians, have the right of way.

It really depends on the town. In all of Oakland people act like cars don't exist in a deathwish looking manner. In San Francisco the crosswalks are green for a long time to amply nurture the throngs of pedestrians. In contrast, pedestians in LA have to sprint across the boulevards. In Pasadena (my favorite for pedestrian zones) the lights go a step further and have a pedestrian mode in which it's even kosher to cross at a diagonal.

It was my thought back in Santa Cruz that intersections should have speed-bump elevated sidewalks in the mall zone to emphasize that pedestrians always have the right of way.

Back in the 50's LA had the right idea of putting pedestrian overpasses and underpasses across the boulevards, separating the two entirely.

There's that pop-song 'Nobody walks in LA' which seems to comparatively be true. Cars own the streets here more than any other place I've seen in California except Palo Alto which is half express-ways.

I have a huge park 15 minutes walk from me, and the only way there is to bike or walk along a stretch of freeway with no shoulder (unless you have a car and a day-parking budget).

Anywhere there's bad traffic (which tends to vary). Other than that, I don't care.

Downtown! Ugh. The rest are all about the same.

> They may not own cars, and see the college as their turf where they,
> the pedestrians, have the right of way.
>

Well, under current law in VA, pedestrians do have the right of way. But that's not really the point. When you step into a street which, after all, was designed for vehicular traffic, you look first. That's all I'm saying.




> There's that pop-song 'Nobody walks in LA' which seems to comparatively
> be true. Cars own the streets here more than any other place I've
> seen in California except Palo Alto which is half express-ways.

Back when I lived in Long Beach, I was at a friends house talking, playing chess, etc. He ran out of cigarettes and asked me if I wanted to ride to the store with him. So we walk to the car, get in and he drives a half a block to a corner store. I couldn't believe it.


>
> I have a huge park 15 minutes walk from me, and the only way there
> is to bike or walk along a stretch of freeway with no shoulder (unless
> you have a car and a day-parking budget).


Well, my car died this past Tuesday. So now, I ride my bike to the ferry landing in Portsmouth, take a ten minute ride across the water and ride the bike to the hospital. I'm not planning on getting another car, I hate the damned things. I love driving, but owning a car is a real pain in the ass. Most places around here, riding a bike is no problem. Well, some stretches along High Street are a little iffy, but fortunately, I don't have ride that way to get to work.

BTW, was this survey created by the person you were thinking of?

I have never lived in a small-to-moderately sized city. Hmmmm, no option for me!

1 -- campuses -- because you have to dodge pedestrians (with right of way off course) lost in their thoughts not paying attention where they're walking (I would know, I was one)

2 -- K-12 -- I hate being stuck doing 20.

3 -- The downtown/shopping district --- too many lights, too much traffic

4 -- residential --- the speed limit is still 20, but no one enforces it, and theres not that many pedestrians or traffic

5 -- Port or terminal areas -- driving near airports is pretty annoying, but sea ports are ok I guess

6 -- Industrial areas -- They don't bother me for some reason

I guess somewheres in there should be military bases. I guess its like a cross between residential areas and college campuses. Pedestrians still have the right of way, but at least they're more alert. And for some reason, the stop sign had red lights flashing around it, so I guess they mean business when they say stop. Well, I've only been on two anyway.

Well, maybe you've never lived in one. Doesn't necessarily mean you've never driven in one, does it?

Port or terminal areas-- too many harried nervous people that are not paying attention to others
Industrial areas --crappy dirty, not much for sight seeing or people watching
School zones --ack! soccer mom types are the worst drivers, most that I have seen are quite rude and in a hurry. Bus drivers are out to kill.
College/University campuses--kids wandering in traffic with the arrogant attitude they have the right of way ALL the time, very aggressive pedestrians.
Residential areas--unles I am there for a puprose, I like to check out yards and stuff, but if I am there because I am lost than this would be #1 most disliked.
Shopping district--most drivers in that area are pretty alert drivers.

Exactly

"For my money, college campuses are the worst. You would think the average college student would be old enough and smart enough to stop and look both ways before stepping into the street, but you would be wrong."

I see you has the same experience I did. Only difference I was on both ends of the deal.

Maybe not such a difference after all. I did attend a few classes at San Francisco State University. Me though, I looked before stepping into the street. Of course, I never got any kind of degree or anything. Wonder if there is any correlation?

"When you step into a street which, after all, was designed for vehicular traffic, you look first. That's all I'm saying. " - Well yeah. Even without a car myself, I was dumbfounded by the Oakland death-wish style.

"he drives a half a block" - Yep, that's LA. I avoided a car in recent years for that reason.

Any car, new or falling apart is going to cost you $1500-3000/yr to maintain. You can't stop on a dime to check out a shop. A bike is as fast as a bus in LA. I have plans for snap-on rim motors, rain canopies, and a trailer which makes hauling six bags of groceries or a lazy-chair convenient. If the busses had a back hald which allowed bikes and shopping carts, people wouldn't need to buy cars in the first place except off-road camping trips (which would be more camingish on a bike anyhow). If the busses were tied into cell phones and public neighborhood taxis, between express bus stops and door fronts, along with groceries, no need to even walk.

Unfortunately CA laws discriminate against the most practical sort of vehicle of all, electric bikes/mopeds which can go more than 20mph. I'd like to see a lane on each boulevard dedicated to such vehicles shared by open sidewalk trolley/busses (the hop on/off sort, especially in shopping districts). The inner boulevard lane (including freeways) should have charging transducers for electric vehicles that don't have to carry 300 batteries, just enough to get from boulevard to driveway.

I was wrong about the SC creator. Your options sounded like Fairbanks, AK.

> Well, maybe you've never lived in one. Doesn't necessarily mean you've
> never driven in one, does it?

Well, to be truthful....not really, not to the degree that I would know which area of town to dislike driving in the most. Driving in a new city is stressful where ever you are.

I hate school zones. Here where I live seems like there is a school on every damn block. And even worse, when school lets out, the little idiots just straggle across the road so you have to sit there forever waiting on the damn little ba**ards...

Well, even after editing this, taking your suggestions into account, SY in his response caused me to realize I had left out one biggy in this area, military bases and environs. Duh! And Norfolk is a Navy town! But, in my defense, I actually have zero occasion to drive in those areas anyway. Ah well.

Yeah, it was a place to rant about college student pedestrian behavior. A lot of surveys, including my own, are like that at times.

>| If the busses had a back hald which allowed
> bikes and shopping carts, people wouldn't need to buy cars in the
> first place except off-road camping trips (which would be more camingish
> on a bike anyhow). If the busses were tied into cell phones and public
> neighborhood taxis, between express bus stops and door fronts, along
> with groceries, no need to even walk.
>

Buses here have a rack on the front of the bus which can hold a couple of bicycles. The driver secures them. This would be great, but the state of public transportation here is atrocious. Bus stops are mostly few and far between, there are overly long waits for buses and in some instances the routes you have take involving one or more transfers are just ridiculously convoluted. In many, if not most cases, a bike is a lot faster than the bus. The most reliable and timely form of public transportation in my immediate area is the ferry between Portsmouth and Norfolk.

> Unfortunately CA laws discriminate against the most practical sort
> of vehicle of all, electric bikes/mopeds which can go more than 20mph.
> I'd like to see a lane on each boulevard dedicated to such vehicles
> shared by open sidewalk trolley/busses (the hop on/off sort, especially
> in shopping districts). The inner boulevard lane (including freeways)
> should have charging transducers for electric vehicles that don't
> have to carry 300 batteries, just enough to get from boulevard to
> driveway.

I'm thinking about getting a moped or electric bike. My first thought was that I should be able save up fairly quickly if I'm not spending money on gas, but that thought went down in flames. Ferry fare two way is $3.00/day.
This is $30.00 in a ten-working day pay period. I was filling the car every two weeks. My last fill-up was $27.00. So no gas savings. Once I get rid of the heap, the maintenance, registration and insurance savings will creep in, but slowly.

Yep. I'm making a motorized bike, if I didn't say that already. Need to increase my range beyond LA.

As long as I've lived in my city..... I've never been fully comfortable with driving in the downtown area. I love being down there on foot, but I never go unless I have to.