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I would say that it does, if only because a pedestrian walking along the sidewalk doesn't have to worry about a car backing up out of a driveway and running him over. And yes, the parked cars do serve as a buffer against the moving traffic in the street, thus making the walking experience more pleasant.
That said, I love having a garage, and now that I have one, I would never want to give it up. But then again, I live in a low-density suburb, where one expects to have garages and off-street parking. For a city, it seems that the best compromise is to have alleys and garages behind the houses while keeping the front side clear of driveways and allowing on-street parking.
On-street parking can be dangerous. Kids run out into the street (the classic is chasing a ball) between parked cars and get hit.
Storm water shouldn't be handled by sewers. Sewers connect to the waste water treatment plant and can be overwhelmed by storm water. Storm water should be handled by a separate system . The problem is that ruoff from built up areas runs off faster than runoff from natural farmland. That causes overloads on the ecosystem in rivers and in our case the Chesapeake Bay. It also can cause problems for landowners downstream from the developed areas causing flooding higher water tables, etc. Maryland has gotten tougher on developers forcing them to handle storm water runoff on their property. This reduces the amount of property that can be built on or paved and forces them to have various features to handle storm water runoff and allow more of it to enter into the ground or runoff slower. Getting rid of alleyways and narrowing streets has been a major way of reducing paved areas in order to keep the number of houses that they want to put on the property.
Do you realize ..... OUR OLDER CITIES Built this way as WAS JUST THE NORM THEN?
Of course it was NOT the best choice we surely know today. Chicago realized this problem and a big issue was -- not wanting storms waters to overflow capacity and carry sewer/street run-off to damage Lake Michigan. A ASSET they want to preserve. They REVERSED the Chicago river in the early 20th century to pollute Lake Michigan and their source of drinking water..... then and today.
Both Chicago and Milwaukee have DEEP-TUNNEL projects to protect the Lake, river and flooded basements. Chicago's is 30-year ongoing multi-billion project. The largest in the world in timeframe and cost.
Ongoing since 1975 with phases open. Added were former quarries to further hold this water till sewage treatment facilities could process it. The quarries each had timeframes till exhausted to utilize.
The completion date was all along 2029. But not sure if added quarries could extend it. I did not read it is.
As for ALLEYS. They serve a purpose in out cities. Chicago especially with its largest city-wide system where power-lines and poles run and garages of course it adds another exit.
Examples of alleys north of downtown in Wrigleyville where tall infill multi-residential examples ... can still have additional parking in the alley. These as most ... fully cemented today. Instead ôf garages and just trash pick-up. They originally had horses and manure pick-up.
Front new toll infill as separated and unattached as is that city's tradition over solid rows and street-frontage for green.
Newer Bricking of alleys to allow drainage. But only a small portion of the city got done so far. Costly and can't be a priority today. They do not look great after a few years. I doubt if very popular....
Do you realize ..... OUR OLDER CITIES Built this way as WAS JUST THE NORM THEN?
Yes I know older systems were built that way. We have that concern in older parts of town. The new regs are part of the solution to reduce runoff and it hits smaller areas with open space harder than the bigger cities that are pretty well built up. But it means that any newly laid out areas have to comply with the new rules.
A few points from one who's BTDT (,in no particular order):
The parent, usually the mother, has to take them to the park when they're young, so parks are a special treat, not the regular play place.
You can teach your kids not to run into the street, but when their favorite ball rolls out into the street, they'll usually go after it.
Kids don't understand the dangers of running into the street, etc. They think their parents are just being mean when they (parents) tell the kids to stay out of the street.
My own kids had a near miss walking into the street between two parked on their way to the bus stop. The teen driver came over to the house to apologize, and my husband reassured her that the kids were at fault.
A few points from one who's BTDT (,in no particular order):
The parent, usually the mother, has to take them to the park when they're young, so parks are a special treat, not the regular play place.
You can teach your kids not to run into the street, but when their favorite ball rolls out into the street, they'll usually go after it.
Kids don't understand the dangers of running into the street, etc. They think their parents are just being mean when they (parents) tell the kids to stay out of the street.
My own kids had a near miss walking into the street between two parked on their way to the bus stop. The teen driver came over to the house to apologize, and my husband reassured her that the kids were at fault.
If they're too young to go to a nearby park by themselves, then aren't they too young to be playing in front of the house unsupervised?
Yes/no. Going off to a park several blocks away is for older kids. And even older kids can run out into the street. Mine weren't that young when they almost got hit walking to the school bus. Yes, if parking is legal, people will park on the streets. There's nothing you can do about it. But it's not particularly safe.
Chicago is the alleyway Capital of the world. Its power-line poles Aldo run down the aalys and frees the fronts from them where not underground as in the core or last growth of the city.
...
Chicago is the alley capital of the country, with more than 1,900 miles of them within its borders.
Not quite sure if 'being the alley capital of the world' is something to write home about. Alleys are dark, often run down, contain trash cans, may attract the less desirable people, contain old cars without wheels, and wandering around there may increase your odds of becoming a victim of crime. Perhaps there is a correlation between the amount of alleys Chicago has and its above average crime rates.
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