The Editor, Sir:

I propose that the residential community of upper Widcombe Road, leading up to Mountain Springs, and the surrounding roadways, be officially declared a national public-exercise park. Strangers to the community might then safely walk or jog (often three abreast in the road) for the six-hour period daily, in the mornings and evenings, as in increasing numbers they currently do, unfettered by the inconveniences of cars legitimately being driven on these roads by residents journeying to and from their homes and inadequate parking for the cars of those who come to the community to exercise.

After all, as residents, we welcome the influx of strangers who leave their quiet communities to exercise in ours. We delight in being awakened by the walkers' chatter and the blips of car alarms being activated at 5 o'clock in the morning (to rise to the sun or the twitter of birds is so yesterday!). We purchased our homes in this heretofore quiet neighbourhood with the full expectation that it would not be so quiet at the times when other people want to walk or run in it for exercise. We have no misgivings about the strange cars that we see parked in front of our homes, for hours at a time. In this very safe city strangely parked cars should not at all be viewed as security threats.

Driving woes

As for driving on the roadways, we live for the thrill of being forced to drive our cars on the wrong side of the road around a blind bend as we overtake people on the road, or cars parked illegally on the many corners. Why should we fear crashing into a car coming in the opposite direction on the correct side of the road? Never mind that there are no alternative roads to the community, we should prohibit the residents' vehicular traffic to and from their homes during the exercisers' peak hours for everyone's (exercisers and residents) protection.

It is not as if there are more appropriate, alternative areas than our community, for people to obtain their daily exercise, in nearby Hope Gardens, Mona Dam or Emancipation Park. Although we pay our property taxes, it would be naive to expect that a call to the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation about the illegal parking and road-safety threat would be addressed, that a call to the member of parliament for the constituency would generate a response or that the Government should consider that a necessary part of town planning is the provision of an adequate number of public parks for a burgeoning urban population so that my community does not need to be used as one.

We residents must not be selfish. The comfort of those who wish to enjoy the challenging hill climb in our neighbourhood must supersede the comfort of us property owners (and the squatters, but that's another matter) in the area. Widcombe Springs Exercise Park - a wonderful idea.

I am, etc.,

CLAUDIA CHEN

cjwcobedience@gmail.com

McCauley Heights

Kingston 6