Oct. 9 was National Walk to School day. But how many kids in Homer will walk or bike to school this week? 

Many of Homer’s roads are dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists, youth especially. There are some great trails in town, but they are not an integrated system. It is encouraging that the city, borough and state have plans for some high traffic spots that consider pedestrian and cyclist needs. But even Homer’s low-use residential streets can be problematic.

We live on Bayview Avenue, and cars regularly speed such that we hesitate to let our young children walk to their friends’ houses three doors down. So how do we fix the problem? 

One way is to spend a lot of money, buying up easements, building sidewalks and bike lanes. 

Another way is to change the way we share the road. 

In our neighborhood, more than 500 kids and 200 adults walk the Bayview-Mountainview loop to trick-or-treat on Halloween. There also is an incredible amount of traffic — an unsafe and stressful combination. Neighborhood residents are canvassing the neighborhood and proposing to make Bayview and Mountainview avenues “Halloween OneWays” from 5 to 8 p.m. on Oct. 31.  

With approval from the city and police department, volunteers would close one lane to streamline traffic and give trick-or-treating kids and parents a lane of the road to walk safely. 

Neighbors contacted so far are enthusiastic and willing to volunteer for the proposed event. Email HalloweenOneWay@gmail.com with questions or to help. Look for neighborhood signs as the project develops. Let’s try something new to make the evening safer and more fun for everyone. 

Adele Person Groning