The dangers of Tucson sidewalks

Walking in Tucson is difficult throughout much of the city. On the University of Arizona campus students are spoiled with nice pathways, but take a look off at the city and you'll find some uninviting walkways.

The most common problem is extended gaps that make moving along the road dangerous. These rocks around bus stops and areas with a lot of foot traffic pose a high risk of danger. Slipping is made easier by the round pebbles sliding underfoot. As well, rainfall causes many sidewalks to be partially rock covered.

Glass is a huge problem because one broken bottle's shards can stick into the dirt and stay there for years. Sandals are arguably the preferred footwear in the region and many have thin soles that are easily penetrable. Often times, glass is broken into dirt walkways and pieces jagged pieces stick out, easily cutting through most flip-flops.

Wheelchair users have to weave through gaps in the pavement. Here you can see the sidewalk simply stop and the curb is at least a foot high. This makes maneuvering for handicapped persons hard. Either go back in the direction or ramp it off the curb into the bike lane. Hard-packed dirt surfaces are not considered suitable for handicapped persons in the city.

Tucson's Sidewalk Inventory plan from 2005

Sidewalks are costly city improvements and the city has a lot of work to do to upgrade the walkways. The city's plan uses a ranking system to prioritize areas that need improvements first. Two more qualifications for improvements are the users each day and potential safety issues. Sidewalks that get improvements first are ones close to schools, parks and medical facilities.