An ordinance to make sidewalks and bikeways near construction safer for pedestrians and cyclists passed in the Metro Council tonight. The bill, Ordinance No. BL2016-240, will require contractors to provide appropriate accommodations when their construction blocks a public right-of-way normally used by pedestrians or cyclists.
Earlier: Don’t Block My Walk, Say Councilmembers
Councilmembers Allen and Elrod, who led the charge on the bill, were looking to address such dangerous and inconvenient situations as this:
#dontblockmywalk pic.twitter.com/GRuubaqL8y
— Eric Near (@ericnear) November 19, 2015
And this:
@joeygarrison #dontblockmywalk pic.twitter.com/qrIyKBxEVP
— Phin Daly (@phin_daly) October 27, 2015
This doesn’t mean that all those sidewalks will be immediately unblocked, though. The ordinance still has to be signed by Mayor Barry (or, at least, not vetoed). And then, it is the responsibility of Public Works to “adopt rules and standards” to carry out the legislation. It’s not clear what, if any, enforcement capability Metro will have against non-compliant contractors.