Danger on the Bridge

 

Back in January, when snow was on our minds, CA shared what I thought was an out-of-this world video taken on the pedestrian bridge over route 29. 

CA’s Internet Sensation 

The video depicts a vehicle traversing the length of the bridge for the purpose of snow removal. I may have gotten more excited about it than most people. The wintry vision brought to mind some kind of trippy theme park ride. 

Yesterday local Facebook user Demetrius Hunt shared a video of a very different kind of trip across the Route 29 pedestrian bridge. You can find it here.

Simply put: it’s a car. On the bridge. A pedestrian and bicycle bridge. 

It’s hard to believe that anyone could approach the entrance to that bridge and think it was for cars. There were plenty of comments online as to how it might have happened. What’s most important is that everyone agreed that it was an unsafe situation both for pedestrians and the driver himself. It was a remarkably charitable discussion.

Whether his GPS unaccountably took him by that unorthodox route or whether, perhaps, his best driving days are behind him, the fact remains that the bridge as it stands today is not set up for automobile use.

And yet…

Once upon a time, the Bridge Columbia folks got us excited about a better plan for that bridge, and that plan contained the possibility of transit. Not individual cars, mind you, but public transit.

If you look carefully at this artist’s rendering of Bridge Columbia, you’ll see a vehicle. It’s a bus. The creators of the orginal plan envisioned pedestrian, bicycle, and transit access, connecting Oakland Mills to Downtown Columbia in a faster and easier route than exists anywhere else.

As with many big-dream projects, what began as a transformational, entirely new concept was completed as some very nice repairs to the old bridge. And: no transit. Sometimes you just can’t get the people with the power and the money to get as excited about your project as you are.

It happens.

I still love that bridge, even if it didn’t turn out exactly as planned. I’m grateful for all the people who advocated for a better bridge. Lots of people use it. I’d still like to see the work done that would enable the public transit piece.

In the meantime: should we think about ways to prevent misguided automobiles from making their way across? If we do, it’s important to do it in a way that doesn’t impede residents using mobility scooters. Is that possible?

Part of me wants to believe that one car on the bridge isn’t a trend. But I can’t exactly prove that. This is simply the only car documented on film. It’s something to think about. 

Many thanks to Mr. Hunt for allowing me to share his video here, and for his genuine concern for the both the pedestrian and the driver.