Desire Waste Bins
After snowfall, a seemingly secret network of footpaths reveals itself to the city, cutting across street corners and open spaces. These are 'desire paths', so-called because they're formed by pedestrians' ambulatory desires, which are often to get from point A to point B as efficiently as possible. Desire paths also take the form of narrow dirt footpaths stamped out of grassy areas.
When city planners listen to desire paths in their city and build official paths according to them, the built walking infrastructure is congruent with how pedestrians actually walk. This infrastructure fulfills its intended function ― it works. When infrastructure doesn't fulfill its function, a second infrastructure must then be developed to compensate for the shortcomings of the first.
Infrastructure built for pedestrians should heed to their desires if we want them to use it. And, considering desire paths, pedestrians like infrastructure that makes their life efficient, easy, and as effortless as possible. So infrastructure built for pedestrians should require as little effort as possible on their part. Anyways, it's easier and more democratic to shape a city around its people than it is to force its people into the shape of the city.
Traces of our desires as city dwellers exist in other forms, like the places we decide to litter. Many spots in Toronto that are not trash bins are routinely treated as if they were. For example, the ashtrays outside at Queen and Shaw or the planting pot outside Black Market at Queen and Beverly.
Infrastructure built for pedestrians should heed to their desires if we want them to use it. And, considering desire paths, pedestrians like infrastructure that makes their life efficient, easy, and as effortless as possible. So infrastructure built for pedestrians should require as little effort as possible on their part. Anyways, it's easier and more democratic to shape a city around its people than it is to force its people into the shape of the city.
Traces of our desires as city dwellers exist in other forms, like the places we decide to litter. Many spots in Toronto that are not trash bins are routinely treated as if they were. For example, the ashtrays outside at Queen and Shaw or the planting pot outside Black Market at Queen and Beverly.
Putting waste in those places is littering, and we shouldn't litter. But pedestrians continually do, indicating they desire waste bins in these spots.
I think Solid Waste Management would be wise to take desire waste spots as cues to install new bins. The other option is unappealing and expensive ― having the streets strewn with litter and paying someone to clean up the mess.
I think Solid Waste Management would be wise to take desire waste spots as cues to install new bins. The other option is unappealing and expensive ― having the streets strewn with litter and paying someone to clean up the mess.
I am not suggesting we cover our sidewalks in waste bins. Though this would make waste disposal for pedestrians almost entirely effortless, maintenance costs would be too high. Striking a balance between what's efficient for the city and the city's users is what we need. We can get there by placing waste bins where we find an especially strong collective desire to litter.