Alotta Monkey Business

Walk This Way (WC 293 Rated E)

Which side of the sidewalk is the proper side to walk on and why since it is always a two-way path?

As far as I know, you can walk on either side of the sidewalk. But as I ponder this question, I remember my grandma telling me to use the sidewalk going in the same direction as the traffic. I mean this; according to grandma, I should walk in the same direction as the traffic is moving, not towards it. Just the opposite of walking on the side of the road, where you do walk towards oncoming traffic, but never with it.

Even though she told us this, I do not remember her following this rule. I do remember us little ones had to walk on inside away from the road, she would walk closest to the road. It was the same with my parents and older siblings, the oldest always walked closest to the road. I remember it was to keep us safe by giving the older walker more time to grab us if we tried to walk into traffic.

This doesn't answer what direction, however. As I look back, it didn't make any difference, we walked in either direction, with no right side and no wrong side. The only time that it made a difference was when meeting other people, then we would always move to the right side. They would also move to the right, thereby creating room for both to pass.

If that's some kind of unwritten rule or not, I do not know. But, I do still move to the right when I meet people. Most often, they do the same and everyone is happy.

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