Photo Gallery: Dangerously Incomplete Streets

Look at these photos. Then think about the roadways near you. There's a good chance you're encountering similar sights and scenes

Will She Make It?

An older woman attempts to cross a very wide roadway.

Photo courtesy National Complete Streets Coalition

In a nation of roadways built for motor vehicles, pedestrians routinely put their lives at risk with every step they take. Crossing lanes of traffic on foot is a challenge, even with a crosswalk and signal. Let's hope this woman walks really fast.

Complete Versus Incomplete Streets

A man trying to cross a five-lane lawn is stuck on a narrow median.

Photo by Dan Burden

Can you find the man trying to cross the road? (Hint: He's stuck in the middle.) Complete Streets serve all users, be they drivers, bicyclists or pedestrians. This is an "Incomplete Street." Versions of this road exist throughout the United States.

Stuck in the Middle

A pedestrian attempts to cross a bad intersection

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

Each corner of this busy intersection features useful destinations, be they restaurants, shops, medical offices or a new apartment building. What the location doesn't have is a sensible and safe way to get from one spot to another without a car.

Ready, Set, Go?

A pedestrian gets ready to step into a crosswalk traversing more than 8 lanes of traffic.

Photo courtesy National Complete Streets Coalition

This image is among those that accompanied the release of the 2019 Dangerous by Design report. (See the link below.) From this pedestrian's view, there appears to be eight vehicle lanes. Maybe more?

Take a Walk on the Wild Side

Four photos show pedestrians trying to cross or walk along unsafe streets.

Photo collage from the National Complete Streets Coalition

These images also accompanied the release of the 2019 Dangerous by Design report. Too many streets have no sidewalks or crosswalks. Too many streets with sidewalks have crosswalks placed too far apart (sometimes a mile or more).

Don't Walk, Ever

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

There are no sidewalks, so the school buses serving this area leave no child behind. Even students who live near the school are required to take the bus or be driven.

School Days

Students walk along a road with no sidewalks.

Photo courtesy National Complete Streets Coalition

These students travel to and from school along this busy road with no sidewalks. Since most U.S. high schools start in the 7 a.m. hour, teens are often walking to school before dawn. Would you want your child or grandchild walking along this road in the dark — or at any time of day?

A Dead End

A roaway shoulder used by cyclists leads to a sudden dead end.

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

What happens when a bicyclist or pedestrian traveling along the shoulder of this suburban road finds that the path abruptly ends? The choices are limited and risky: Turn around, trample through someone's yard or move into the traffic lane.

Stuck in the Mud

People wanting to cross the street have to stand in the dirt and mud.

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

It's great that the intersection features crosswalks and traffic signals, but there's no sidewalk at this corner to lead the way, especially for someone in a wheelchair, pushing a stroller or simply wearing a nice pair of shoes.

So Near Yet So Far

There's a sidewalk ramp for wheelchairs but no traffic light or stop sign.

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

This sloping and marked sidewalk works for people in wheelchairs or with vision impairments. Too bad there isn't a crosswalk or traffic signal so residents of the adjacent assisted living facility can safely walk to the shops across the way.

One Way In, No Way Out

A man in a wheelchair uses a ramp on one side of a street and then sees that there's no ramp on the other side.

Photo courtesy National Complete Streets Coalition

There's a ramp so a wheelchair user can exit the sidewalk to cross the road, but there's no ramp on the opposite side! This gentleman is rolling into a roadway he can't escape.

A Ramp for a Picnic?

A sidewalk ramp leads to a lawn rather than a sidewalk.

Photo by Brett VA

This ADA-compliant curb cut was installed outside the headquarters of an aging-related agency. Was the ramp placed for wheelchair access to the lawn?

Foot Traffic

A woman returns from a store by walking along a worn down path in the grass.

Photo courtesy National Complete Streets Coalition

Look at the well-worn dirt path. People have obviously been walking to shops and other places along this commercial roadway. Wouldn't it make sense to install a sidewalk?

Road Rules

Bicyclists and drivers are supposed to share this road with a do-not-cross double yellow line.

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

After a car struck and killed a bicyclist, the county that governs this rural community posted signs affirming "Bicycles May Use Full Lane." That's a nice offer, but with drivers and cyclists sharing the same winding country road dangers persist.

The Waiting Game

A man stands at a chilly bus stop that provides no seating or shelter.

Photo courtesy National Complete Streets Coalition

Public transit options are important community features. A safe place to wait for the bus is also important. Bus stop seating and shelter from the elements — and from traffic — are basic needs, as are safe and accessible pathways to get there.

Find the Bus Stop

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

It's there, hidden within the weeds, shrubs and trees. Someone waiting for a bus can stand in the road or in the overgrown greenery. Bug spray is recommended.

The Senior Center is Up the Stairs

This steep staircase near a bus stop leads to a senior center.

Photo by Brett VA

An award-winning senior center is at the top of the stairs. (Stairs!?) At the base of the steps is a bus shelter and crosswalk. (That's good.) But there's no sidewalk or curb cut for access. (That's bad.)

Don't Hit the Hydrant!

A fire hydrant is placed in the middle of the sidewalk.

Photo by Julie Nepveu, AARP

The fire hydrant's location undermines the usefulness of the sidewalk to wheelchair users and people pushing strollers. The curb ramp with a detectable (i.e. bumpy) warning pad is a smart feature. Too bad it's mostly covered by sand.

Scary Movie

There's no safe way for a pedestrian to get to this movie theater.

Photo by Melissa Stanton, AARP

The movie theater is next to the fake lighthouse, across the road from where you just had lunch. All you need to do is cross four lanes of traffic that may or may not stop. You can use the faded crosswalk but there's no traffic signal. If you time it right you should be okay.

The Asphalt Jungle

A vast, largely empty Wal-Mart parking lot.

Photo by Brett VA

This parking lot is located in Anywhere and Everywhere USA. There's nothing welcoming, safe or appealing about this type of way-too-common place.

Right Turns Can Go So Wrong

Walking across driveways is risky for pedestrians.

Photo courtesy National Complete Streets Coalition

Driveway curb cuts in sidewalks and paths place pedestrians at risk from incoming and outgoing vehicles.

How You Can Make Streets Safer

Download or order the free AARP Walk Audit Tool Kit

^{First published in 2014 and updated with added images since then, this slideshow won Best Slideshow at the 2014 MIN Editorial and Design Awards (now called the Folio Eddie & Ozzie Awards).}

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Photo Gallery: Dangerously Incomplete Streets

Look at these photos. Then think about the roadways near you. There's a good chance you're encountering similar sights and scenes

Will She Make It?

Complete Versus Incomplete Streets

Stuck in the Middle

Ready, Set, Go?

Take a Walk on the Wild Side

Don't Walk, Ever

FREE! WEEKLY!

School Days

A Dead End

Stuck in the Mud

So Near Yet So Far

One Way In, No Way Out

A Ramp for a Picnic?

Foot Traffic

Road Rules

The Waiting Game

Find the Bus Stop

The Senior Center is Up the Stairs

Don't Hit the Hydrant!

Scary Movie

The Asphalt Jungle

Right Turns Can Go So Wrong

How You Can Make Streets Safer