Woman’s interest in walking is far more than pedestrian

WHEN MOLLY O’REILLY and her husband, Steve Lockwood, decided to settle in Sandpoint, they started their house hunt at the Panida Theater. From there, they walked. They followed the sidewalks until they found a home for sale with a pedestrian-friendly route. “As a result, we’re a one-car, one-bike family,” O’Reilly said.

Her passion for walkability led to her involvement in several community projects, all aimed at improving and promoting transportation by foot power.

Before moving to Sandpoint in 1999, O’Reilly and her husband lived on a sailboat for four years and explored countries in the South Pacific. When they dropped anchor, their adventures were primarily on foot.

She was enchanted by a stunning Australian island, Lord Howe, which operates with few cars. The locals walk or bike everywhere and expect their visitors to do the same. Five dollars paid for a weekly bike rental, including helmet. O’Reilly found the island astonishingly quiet.

“I came to appreciate that walking is a wonderful way to see the world,” she said.

The customs of tiny islands gave O’Reilly big inspiration when she landed in the states.

“People in the U.S. tend to walk less as a part of daily life than anybody else we saw,” she said. “We were quite struck in coming home that people were heavier than people we saw walking a lot.”

O’Reilly decided to focus on two areas that held her interest. One was the Native Plant Society, of which she is the local chapter president, and the other was promoting safer walkways.

“I like to be part of the community and feel like I’m contributing,” she said.

About two years ago she visited the Sandpoint public works department in City Hall with concern about the condition of sidewalks. A church building had been demolished and a For Sale sign went up on its lot. O’Reilly asked whether new construction on the site would have sidewalks. She was told it would only if the City Council required it.

The council was rethinking its policy on sidewalks and asked O’Reilly if she’d help survey the city streets. She agreed with one condition. She proposed ongoing involvement through a Pedestrian Advisory Committee, a group of citizens devoted to improving the town’s walkability.

O’Reilly is now chairwoman of the seven-member committee, which includes folks who evaluate sidewalks from all perspectives. She learned from a blind member that tree branches at face-level are frightening. Another member uses a motorized wheelchair and reminds others that cars parked across sidewalks force wheelchairs into the street. A business owner who depends on lunchtime foot traffic participates, as well as a high school student and other neighborhood citizens, like O’Reilly, who favor walking.

Forty volunteers were recruited to survey the town’s pathways. A complete map of Sandpoint’s streets now hangs in City Hall. Streets are color-coded by condition of the sidewalks. Green streets, which have no sidewalks, are plentiful on the map. Blue streets, which have good condition walks, are more scarce and found mostly in areas of newer construction.

Kody Van Dyk, Sandpoint’s public works director, said that the survey has helped prioritize which streets need improvements. U.S. Highway 2 has been assigned the highest priority, partially because of numerous crossing points used by children traveling to school. Next on the council’s agenda is upgrading existing sidewalks and making them accessible to people with disabilities.

Van Dyk credits O’Reilly and her committee for raising the level of consciousness about pedestrians’ needs among City Council members. He and other members participated in the community Walk to School Days spearheaded by O’Reilly last year.

O’Reilly believes that a first-hand view of routes traveled by children to school increases support for issues like stop signs and marked crosswalks. This fall’s Walk to School Day had four schools and nearly 1,500 students participating in the international event, which promotes health, safety and concern for the environment.

This summer O’Reilly joined the State of Idaho Safe Routes to School advisory program and participates in monthly Boise meetings via conference calls. This group has a say in distribution of federal funds available for sidewalks, bike trails and other pedestrian projects.

O’Reilly’s passion for transit issues was influenced by her years living in Portland, where free downtown public transportation was available and driving options were encouraged.

“I rode my bike to work whenever I could and carpooled when I couldn’t,” she said.

In Sandpoint, O’Reilly gardens in her front yard. When people stroll by and stop to chat, she finds it very pleasant. Her grandchildren attend school near her home and can walk over for after school visits. Her bike is equipped with a wire basket for shopping and if she needs her car for larger purchases, she links errands that day. If a loaf of bread or a few vegetables are needed, she’ll definitely choose to walk.

Since O’Reilly began lobbying at City Hall, Sandpoint has passed ordinances related to streetscape that require all new construction in the city to have sidewalks. If new construction fronts sidewalks that are in poor condition, they must be brought up to standard. The church lot that O’Reilly first inquired about has new homes that are now surrounded by fresh sidewalks.

“People who walk more live healthier lives,” O’Reilly said. “People have recognized more and more that a walkable community is one they want to live in.”