For many, navigating the city’s cracked and cobbled sidewalks has been likened to a minefield. In areas where they are few and far between, it can be a maze. It is a problem Richmond’s Office of Equitable Transit and Mobility is well aware of and is working to solve. The department, which was created three years ago, was established to address these needs and develop a plan to prioritize which areas of the city need the most help and what residents want to see implemented to ensure their safety and mobility.
Yes, let s make Carytown s pedestrian and cycling experience safer and enhance the visitor experience. But closing the area to traffic — given what Cary Street is and what s around it — seems like extreme medicine for a shopping, dining and entertainment district that the New York Times, less than a year ago, described as "bustling."
The idea is to close Carytown to vehicle traffic, theoretically making it safer and easier for pedestrians to enjoy. But some merchants and residents aren t so sure.