South Street Bridge: The Survey

Sarah got this survey walking over the South Street Bridge this morning. Here’s one of the exciting questions!

Yes, reconstruction on the South Street Bridge is apparently going to actually start soon, so soon that they’ve gotten to the all-important “handing out surveys” portion of the project. The new design isn’t quite so hideous and unfriendly, even! Penn is building a “Weave Bridge,” whatever that is.

We will all be highly inconvenienced in just a short while.

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Rubber Sidewalks Most Adored Item In Nation

Be it helping old ladies across the street or regulating food carts, City Council’s fine public servants always seem to have our best interests in mind. But Jim Kenney’s ideas top them all: Rubber sidewalks.

Somehow, this is in the news again — he’s talked about it before — but no matter. As the website for Rubbersidewalks says, “Everyone likes Rubbersidewalks.

Want to know how big Jim Kenney’s plan for rubber sidewalks in the City of Philadelphia? It made it to a South African newspaper column called “Wacky in the USA.” (I’m not quite sure why this idea is so wacky or odd; doesn’t this make perfect sense?)

The company says rubber sidewalks are more durable, are made completely of recycled tires, work better with trees and are still rather hard. (”Not like the Bud Light commercial,” Kenney said.) And over the long run, they’re cheaper. But the main advantage Kenney brought up is rubber sidewalks eliminate slip-and-falls, leading to thousands of dollars in savings from lawsuits. It’s always the lawyers who have to get things done, one way or another.

Rubber Sidewalks for Philadelphia? Stop Laughing and Read This [KYW 1060]
Feb. 5: Jim Kenney To Allow Us To Bounce To Work

Sick People Can’t Catch A Break

Guess what, guys? The Inquirer has a new blog! (I know. You must be very shocked.) This one is by Early Word veteran Peter Mucha and is called “Live From…” The idea, I suppose, is that Mucha is going to go around with his laptop and blog from various locations. (I actually think this is a pretty good idea, if only because most bloggers just sit on our asses all day.)

Moving on from previous posts about being live from Wing Bowl, the King Tut exhibit and the Preston & Steve Show (of course), yesterday Mucha was live from unplowed streets! Of course, it appears he could have just found a street map of Philadelphia, posted it, and then went home to bed, since here were some of the unplowed streets: Columbus Blvd., Market, Walnut, Spring Garden, Callowhill.

But my favorite is Broad Street:

No, this is for real. The grey soggy sandlike mess is even deep on Broad Street. This is at Race, just a block from Hahnemann Hospital. Ambulances and sick people use these streets.

Ambulances and sick people!

Live From… [Inquirer]