How come hardly anyone walks or cycles in OC? (Huntington Beach: homes, neighborhood)

[cnev3]

I have a perfectly good car that I use almost daily, but if i'm going somewhere thats less than a couple blocks, i'll walk. If its less than a few miles, i'll cycle.

Even on a sunny warm afternoon, i'll be the only one on a block whos walking or biking.

Exercise, fresh air, saving money on gas, environmental reasons, lightening the load on our roads, there's more reasons to walk or bike than there are not to.

Maybe with gas prices rising, the idea of walking or biking might start to dawn on OC folks.

[Fontucky]

Let me see if I'm understanding you: Nobody walks in your neighborhood = nobody walks in OC?

[EscapeCalifornia]

Because driving is faster and easier. Once I got my drivers license, cycling became a sport, not transportation.

[bhcompy]

Maybe you've never been to the beach. Tons of walkers and bicyclists in every beach community

[kwong7]

Walking and cycling doesn't seem safe with the current infrastructure and driving behaviors of motorists. Orange County has an odd mix of distracted drivers, density, poor bike lane routes, and poor drivers. Spending my getaway time in Santa Barbara and Napa/Sonoma valleys, and you can cycle around or walk without fear.

[BRinSM]

Originally Posted by kwong7

Walking and cycling doesn't seem safe with the current infrastructure and driving behaviors of motorists. Orange County has an odd mix of distracted drivers, density, poor bike lane routes, and poor drivers. Spending my getaway time in Santa Barbara and Napa/Sonoma valleys, and you can cycle around or walk without fear.

this isn't entirely true, irvine has one of the best bike path systems i've ever seen.

[BeauCharles]

I bought a car in Huntington Beach last May. While they prepped it I walked over to a Norm's coffee shop for lunch. It was on Beach Blvd - about three city blocks away and across the street from the dealership. I was the only person on foot within eyesight on either side of the street. It was kind of strange and I felt probably everyone thought I was a bum. Or a small town hick from NorCal - in which case they'd be right.


Missing Persons - Walking in L.A. - YouTube
May be L.A., but its close enough.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by BRinSM

this isn't entirely true, irvine has one of the best bike path systems i've ever seen.

That's one city. Most of the county is as kwong describes. Even in areas where there are bike lanes, they often end abruptly, forcing you to share the right lane with all those texting drivers. I use to ride all over when I was in high school but it did take some route planning to stay reasonably safe. After not doing it for a few years, I rode on the streets again and decided I'd be safer with the rattle snakes and mountain lions in the back country.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by cnev3

I have a perfectly good car that I use almost daily, but if i'm going somewhere thats less than a couple blocks, i'll walk. If its less than a few miles, i'll cycle.

Even on a sunny warm afternoon, i'll be the only one on a block whos walking or biking.

Exercise, fresh air, saving money on gas, environmental reasons, lightening the load on our roads, there's more reasons to walk or bike than there are not to.

Maybe with gas prices rising, the idea of walking or biking might start to dawn on OC folks.

A lot of places are zoned such that residential is a mile or so (often on hills) away from retail. This is by design. A lot of people don't like traffic and delivery trucks and noise and such near their homes.

Time is money. Even at $4.50 a gallon, for many people, spending a gallon of gas is worth saving an hour of time. Also, even though there are 24 hours in a day, many people only have a couple hours per day of disposable time. Those are valuable hours - not to be spent walking to a store.

Finally, even if the weather was identical all over the US, people in OC probably don't depend on their cars any more than any other county. And, since the weather here is so moderate, people here have more opportunities to travel by foot and bike than people in much of the country.

[Podo944]

My husband is from England, and didn't own a car there.
He took the train into London from Dartford and mostly walked the rest of the way. He walked everywhere rain or shine. As a matter of fact, he didn't even own an umbrella. A lot of people there are always "soggy" and I think hubby has webbed feet!

When he first got here he didn't understand why we'd park up at one end of a large shopping center, then drive to the other end for where ever we needed to go. I explained to him... "it's just how we do!"
He's been here in Orange County now for almost 12 years, has a car, and an extra 20 lbs. as well!