Students had to walk in busy Cold Spring Lane.(Photo by Fern Shen.)

by FERN SHEN

A full week after the blizzard ended, Baltimore streets and sidewalks were still choked with dirty mountains of snow today, causing auto gridlock and a pedestrian nightmare. Many students on their first day back at school had no choice but to walk in the road, inches from whizzing traffic.

The intersection of Loch Raven Boulevard and Cold Spring Lane was particularly perilous, mirroring reports from across the city.

Small children with backpacks trying to cross Loch Raven toward Northwood Appold Community Academy couldn’t stay in the crosswalk and had to swing way out toward the rushing east-bound traffic on Cold Spring.

Why? The mountain of snow on the median extended out over the crosswalk, blocking their way.

“This is just wrong, there is no excuse for this after so many days,” said Albert Jones, one of several parents walking children to school under the guidance of two frantic and very busy crossing guards.

Crossing Loch Raven Boulevard. (Photo by Fern Shen)

By about 10 am (schools started two hours late today) the crossing guards were fed up with that mound. One of them flagged down a passing snowplow and begged him to get rid of the troublesome snow pile. He took one swipe at an edge of it and then drove on.

This snowplow helped. . . . a bit, then kept going. (Photo by Fern Shen)

Bus commuters had it rough at this intersection too.

MTA bus shelters were surrounded by snow, so, rather than wait in them and bound out over the snow berms when the bus came, riders simply waited on the street.

Bus riders avoided the snowed-in shelters and stood out by the street.

The small streets and sidewalks in this neighborhood, needless to say, were untouched by plows. Grindon Avenue and Ailsa Avenue, for instance, were being used only by drivers with big rigs or those willing to risk having their cars’ axles busted or undercarriages ripped off. These roads were rutted with deep tire tracks cut into the chunky, icy snow.

The sidewalks at Garrett Heights Elementary, along Ailsa, were actually cleared off pretty nicely, but past the schoool property, the sidewalks were once again Siberia.

The sidewalk was walkable beside Garrett Heights Elementary, but no further. (Photo by Fern Shen)

All along Cold Spring Lane and other city streets, students and other pedestrians were forced into the streets.

Snowy sidewalks on Cold Spring so kids walked on the road. (Photo by Fern Shen)

Finally, some of the obstacles to walking yesterday were a bit. . . ironic.

Walkers dodge a snowplow as they cross Loch Raven. (Photo by Fern Shen)