News

Dec 24, 2023

I Walk On The Left For A Reason

I was overjoyed two weekends ago when my husband and I were in Falmouth and had time to walk on the Shining Sea bike path before heading back to Sandwich. It was a beautiful day with sun shining,

I was overjoyed two weekends ago when my husband and I were in Falmouth and had time to walk on the Shining Sea bike path before heading back to Sandwich. It was a beautiful day with sun shining, humidity manageable and a nice breeze. Perfect summer weather. We even came across a deer at one point. People were friendly, exchanging hellos and announcing, “Passing on your right.” Yes, I walk on the left of the path. I am blind and I have a guide dog that assists me. He is trained to walk on the left of a road/path when there are no sidewalks. This is for safety. We walk against oncoming traffic, as pedestrians are supposed to on roadways. It also allows me to do a “curb check” where I can pull on the handle and give the command “Left to the curb,” where the dog will turn left to the edge of whatever surface we are walking on, usually where the paved surface transitions to grass or dirt. This allows me to know I am on the very edge of the path/road and not drifting into the middle, where I would certainly be in the way and unsafe.

About 10 minutes into our walk, bikers coming toward us started to yell, “You’re on the wrong side!” And “Wrong lane!” as they passed by. I am aware that there are signs along the path that say keep right, although I have never seen them myself. I am writing this to explain to and educate bikers who are distressed to see me walking toward them that I am aware that I am on the left, and that it is with great purpose. I try to be visible with my clothing, my dog has a leather harness with reflectors and my husband usually walks slightly forward of me for protection, but there is rarely time to educate about the situation as people zoom by shouting at me. My husband will sometimes reply, “No, she’s blind and walks on the left,” but obviously this is not a time for conversation. This is not unique to the Shining Sea. It happens whenever we are at the canal bike path or on the rail trail, as well.

I can appreciate that bikers may be uncomfortable when they see me walking toward them, but aside from painting a center line and training my dog to follow the line, walking on the left of the path is by far the safest place for me to be. I feel strongly that bikers should not be going so fast on a multiuse path that they cannot control their bike to safely maneuver around my dog and me.

Lisa A. Judelson

Susan Carsley Way

Sandwich

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