Philadelphians will soon choose the city’s 100th mayor. In the wake of a term marred by pandemic, unrest, and an alarming rise in violent crime, coverage of the election has not always paid adequate attention to the impact of city policy on mobility and pedestrian safety. Leading up to the primary elections, multiple candidates submitted written responses to a Feet First Philly questionnaire, previewing their platforms on matters of mobility policy, but the two candidates who ultimately secured major party nominations—Republican David Oh and Democrat Cherelle Parker—did not participate.

Both candidates, however, have public records. Parker represented the 9th District in the Philadelphia City Council from 2016 to 2022, and Oh served as a City Councilmember at Large from 2012 to 2023. In order to help voters make an educated choice, this blog post outlines some highlights of Parker and Oh’s relevant Council records. 

1)     Sidewalk Obstruction Reform—Bill 161108 (passed May 11, 2017)

Former Councilmember Gym’s sidewalk obstruction reform bill, which Feet First Philly addressed in its candidate questionnaire, represents both an important policy achievement and a frustrating enforcement deficit. The bill aimed to remedy flaws in the permitting process for construction-related blockages of sidewalks—a public resource essential to the safe passage of pedestrians throughout the city.

The bill passed Council 17-0, earning the votes of both Parker and Oh, meaning that city law now requires would-be sidewalk obstructers to consider providing a “protected walkway” in scenarios where sidewalk obstruction is necessary and where construction of a “covered walkway” is impracticable. Although both candidates’ support for this measure is admirable, sidewalk obstruction remains an issue for the next mayor to solve, in particular because the 2017 reform does nothing to rein in sidewalk obstructers who skip the paperwork entirely and neglect to obtain a permit.

2)    Roosevelt Boulevard Speed Cameras—Bill 190184 (passed May 16, 2019)

In March 2019, Parker introduced a bill authorizing the installation of speed cameras on Roosevelt Boulevard, long known as the most dangerous thoroughfare for pedestrians in Philadelphia. The measure passed Council 17-0, earning the votes of both Parker and Oh.

As a result of this bill, cameras were installed beginning in 2020. A December 2022 report by the Pennsylvania State Advisory Transportation Advisory Committee concluded that the program has been a major success for public safety, decreasing crashes on Roosevelt Boulevard by 36% (compared to 6% citywide during the same period) and decreasing average speeds. Ahead of the program’s planned expiration, a bill has been introduced in the Pennsylvania House seeking to make the cameras permanent.

3)    TCB program (funded by Bill 198059, passed November 21, 2019)

Since 2019, Parker has championed a “Taking Care of Business” (“TCB”) program, in which the city funds community-based nonprofits that sweep sidewalks and clean litter within certain neighborhood commercial corridors. Throughout the mayoral campaign, Parker has regularly referred to TCB as a model that she hopes to adopt city-wide, and there is some evidence that the program is at least modestly successful. A 2022 Department of Commerce report found that commercial corridors included in the program (about one-third of the city’s corridors) rank slightly better on the city’s litter index than corridors not currently included. As of 2022, the TCB program funded employment of 200 personnel at $15 an hour. The program is expected to cost the city $7 million in 2023.

Although Oh has not publicly expressed views on TCB, he supported Bill 198059 along with Parker on November 21, 2019.

4)    Permanent Streeteries—Bill 210776 (passed December 2, 2021)

The emergence of outdoor restaurant dining structures, commonly known as “streeteries,” during the COVID-19 pandemic gave Philadelphians access to a social and recreational life in a period otherwise characterized by isolation, and provided financial support to an industry facing an existential threat. But it was hard not to notice how much the presence of streeteries contributed to the quality of community life generally, and to consider that their utility need not be limited to lockdown conditions. With this in mind, as the scheduled expiration date for temporary streetery licenses approached, a group of Council members, including Parker and led by former mayoral candidate Allan Domb, sponsored legislation to authorize a permanent streetery license program. To ensure the program’s viability, the permanent license process included new safety barrier requirements and hour restrictions. The bill passed 17-0 on December 2, 2021.

The streeteries legislation represented a rare positive development in the movement to prioritize urban livability over parking convenience. However, it could and should be improved further. The final version of the bill limited the program to certain—already more walkable and higher-income–sections of the city, such as Center City, University City, and East Passyunk, out of deference to certain Council members’ vague concerns about community input. In reality, residents of every neighborhood of Philadelphia deserve equal access to safe, pedestrian-friendly cultural amenities.

5)    Washington Avenue Redesign—Bill 220523 (passed June 16, 2022)

In recent years, no pedestrian safety legislation has inspired greater enthusiasm or opposition than the Washington Avenue redesign. Like Roosevelt Boulevard, Washington Avenue has long held a grim reputation as an unacceptably dangerous thoroughfare for pedestrians. After nearly a decade of planning, two rounds of community input, and a great deal of controversy, in June 2022, Council authorized a “hybrid redesign,” including lane reconfiguration, protected bike lanes, bus boarding islands, and other traffic calming measures. However, out of deference to the opposition of Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson, whose 2nd District includes the portion of Washington Avenue west of Broad Street, the legislation applied only to the portion east of Broad.

The legislation passed 16-1, with Oh the only opposing vote. To our knowledge, Oh has not publicly explained his opposition.

6) Illegal Dumping Violations—Bill 220243 (passed June 16, 2022)

However, on the same day that Oh opposed the Washington Avenue redesign, he succeeded in passing a pair of public safety reforms of his own, both of which are worthy of noting here. Bill 220243, which was sponsored by Oh and passed unanimously, empowered the Streets Department to authorize third-party administrators to issue citations for illegal dumping violations and to boot or tow vehicles used to violate illegal dumping rules.

Although we lack data on the impact of this reform to date, the problem it addresses is real and crucial. Illegal dumping threatens public health, creates an environment of lawlessness conducive to crime, and hampers quality of life in noticeable ways. Recent reporting demonstrates that illegal dumping rose significantly during the pandemic, especially in lower income neighborhoods, and that the city lacks the funding, personnel, and possibly the political will to enforce the law.

7)    Parking Enforcement for Semitrailers and Truck Tractors—Bills 220245, 220246, 220247 (passed June 16, 2022)

Also on the same day, Council unanimously passed three related bills introduced by Oh, banning parking of semitrailers and truck tractors on residential blocks, authorizing towing of semitrailers and truck tractors parked in violation of the ban, and levying a $300 penalty per violation. These bills took an important first step to addressing the blight of illegally parked oversized vehicles, but Council soon concluded that additional steps were needed. On April 20, 2023, following both candidates’ resignation from City Council, Bill 230009-AA passed, increasing the penalty from $300 to $500.

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