Or Should We Ask – What is the walkability of streets in beautiful Merida for seniors who enjoy walking?
The walkability of streets in Merida is actually a very honest concern to any senior travelers like us who seriously spend our time walking from point A to point B most days. Since we have found an apartment we like, the shape & condition of sidewalks of Merida streets is of utmost importance to us. Let me say up front that although the sidewalks can be a challenge, they are just a hiccup. The beauty found in the people & daily living here is wonderful. Of course, some streets are an easier walk than others but they all have their share of hidden gems waiting for us to find them.
As we told you all in our original plan for this grand adventure of seniors traveling internationally, we chose to reduce expenses by not owning a vehicle. We walk everywhere – everyday – & the ‘walkability’ of Merida’s streets was a huge part of our decision making when deciding where to make our first stop on this grand adventure. The Big Guy can tell you he is continuously telling me to watch that step, be careful where you step, etc. Looking up at how tall a tree is while walking a sidewalk can be dangerous. Be aware of where you are stepping. I will say this a lot in this post but keep your eyes open!
We know we are not the first & definitely not the last seniors who will be checking out Merida or some part of Mexico looking for their little piece of paradise. With one million expats presently living in Mexico, I am sure a huge number of them are retirees like us searching for that piece of paradise.
Is the walkability of streets in Merida safe for tourists/walkers?
Are the streets of Merida safe for you to be walking? All we can do is share our experiences. Since we have only been in Merida for several months we have felt extremely safe while walking the different neighborhoods of Merida. True, we have not walked every street BUT the areas we have covered thus far have been wonderful. The people of Merida have been nothing but warm for the most part responding to our morning greetings of “Buenos Dias” etc.
If we were afraid of the unknown, we would not be traveling! We don’t travel to just stay indoors. It does nothing for your health or well being even if you “live” in a foreign country. Part of the allure of traveling is the unknown.
Check out this little gem we found walking streets of Merida yesterday. Our noses [& growling tummys] led us straight to this shop.
Police Department
Following along on the tails of “is Merida safe for walkers” above we have to mention the local police. The police have been friendly, waving or responding in kind when we have spoken to them. This has been a very nice thumbs up for us.
Of course, we are not fooled by the friendly waves & warm “Hola’s” we hear from these heavily armed law enforcement officials as they patrol the streets of Merida or direct traffic in the heavy traffic areas. We realize Merida is considered one of the safest cities in North America because these law enforcement officials are fully prepared to handle any situation. As a side note, we have noticed that the law enforcement do run their lights all the time so it is near to impossible to tell when they are on a ‘run’ or just cruising.
Bottom line, regardless your skin color, race, country of origin or whatever, we have only seen the police in Merida treating everyone with respect and kindness.
Back to the walkability of streets in Merida – Crosswalks!
These streets can be BUSY with three or four lanes in each direction with a small median between. Most have raised marked cross walks which resemble speed bump on steroids & some intersections will have crossing lights for pedestrians which is awesome, kind of.
The pedestrian cross lights are not quite the same as we are use to back in the states though since the pedestrian has no control of turning them on. The lights seem to be timed with the lights for traffic so you may be standing a while but it will come on & most of them give you plenty of time to cross although there are a few with a very short time lapse to cross. These are usually on the smaller intersections but you may still have to trot to get across in the allowed time. There are streets that you may come across that require you to be patient, the drivers are going fast and you have to wait until there is a break in traffic and make a made dash across a few lanes of traffic.
TIP: Be sure you are looking at the light in the center for direction to cross. As you see in the pic, we had the green light to cross to median but then had to wait for the red to turn to green to finish crossing. This took me a minute to get the hang of!
On very heavy traffic days we have noticed police directing traffic & they will stop all traffic to let pedestrians cross. Again, we have had no problems.
Is there a difference between drivers in Merida & drivers in Texas?
Ummhh…DEFINITELY! Well we hear more horns honking here on the streets of Merida but I don’t think it is always a negative thing. Sometimes as I watch traffic the honking can almost sound like music. Someone honks to get in line or if someone is moving to slow, etc. Ha. Ok, we have not seen any anger drivers yelling at one another or any Road Rage incidents where one driver will flash another the middle finger. Drivers are sort of in a hurry, but not really. Yes, it sounds confusing, but drivers are “pleasantly” in a hurry…The horn honking may be a simple question or statement of “Can I get in now?” Surprisingly we have not witnessed that first accident yet!
As to driving the streets, The Big Guy & I both agree we would not even attempt it. Watching the drivers on the side streets can be very entertaining to a point. We have noticed that some street corners may have NO ALTO (STOP) signs on any of the corners. On those corners, we are sure to stand on the curb [if available] & wait to see how the drivers handle crossing between the two of them. One driver may come roaring down the side street & slow down a minute to ease out into the center of the intersection & then look to see if anyone is coming. It really can be hilarious but luckily we have not seen any accidents so I guess the drivers know what they are doing!
Drivers, for the most part, will stop & wave us across the street even ones with 2 or more lanes. Just the other evening a driver stopped & asked us if we needed directions or help! Guess we had that look:} We weren’t lost but trying to figure out if we wanted to turn or go on down to next street but we so appreciated the kindness of this driver.
Walkability of Merida Neighborhood Sidewalks…
Honestly, if you read nothing else in this post please pay attention to this – the conditions of sidewalks/curbs can be treacherous if you are aware of where you are walking. We have found that one block may have a pristine flat sidewalk only to end at a curb with a foot drop off! That is a hellacious drop off when you are not expecting it [been there, done that].
Sidewalks can be beautiful especially in the newer built areas but then they may have trees growing in the center of the walk leaving very little room to get around. You will see sidewalks made of brick, tile, gravel, dirt path or over growth of weeds. No real rhyme of reason as I can see.
To us, it seemed that the newer areas of building had the higher & we can only imagine it is to help with flooding when it rains. The water on some streets get horrendously deep folks.
Another con to the nicer & newer built sidewalks is that usually to go along with the high curb levels the rise to the drive entrance – if there is one – can be just as dangerous as the foot high curbs. New stone is all pretty but it is hard to judge the drop off from sidewalk to drive entrance…
I’ve talked about the horrendously high sidewalks with drop offs but I want to mention that a one or two inch curb can be just as dangerous for tripping so again Keep Your Eyes Open! Let me state that there are some nice sidewalks that are wonderfully easy to walk so I don’t want you to think that all sidewalks are a hazard to walking because they are not.
A Word Regarding Wheelchairs on Merida Sidewalks
If you are bound to a wheelchair, than you are most definitely going to need a vehicle to get around. The streets can be paved, cobble stone, bricked, etc so handicap access even to cross streets could be next to impossible. I would suggest if you have to have access by wheelchair that you do your due diligence before picking a neighborhood to live in. Is there a neighborhood map online? Having said that, I am sure there are communities designed toward elderly that address your specific needs.
Tired of Walking? Catch a Bus or Uber!
Lastly, when you are tired of walking catch the city bus. We have been on the yellow bus which cost us 7.5 pesos one way & the green/white bus which cost us 8 pesos each. We walk everyday but on those days when we just aren’t feeling it or need a breather we will hop on the city bus! All the buses have their stops written on the windshield & if you are not sure you can always ask the driver for your stop. Bus stops are everywhere & for the most part are covered for shade & rest!
We use Uber as it is very cost efficient for us. We haven’t really used a Taxi so it’s not a fair statement to say that whether they are or are not budget friendly. We use Uber on a limited basis normally for appointments farther away [that we don’t want to show up sweaty] & when we have a larger than normal amount of groceries to carry back to the apartment. Although Uber is super convenient, we are are trying to stay within our monthly transportation budget. The most we have spent on Uber was a total of $20USD for a round trip fare to Progreso Beach! Let me state, we could have ridden the bus for less but ride would have been longer so…we went the easy way on this trip.
The Benefits of Walking Merida…
There are many different benefits to walking Merida. Besides the obvious of finding that next neighborhood coffee cafe & maintaining heart health & weight control, you cannot deny the relaxation of walking & enjoying the sights of Merida. Each walk offers us an opportunity to discover new adventures like the architecture of both older & newer houses. For us, it is a joy just checking out the various neighborhoods, plants & trees. The colorful homes are just the cherry on top!
I hope you enjoyed this post. Let me end it with some cherries on top! Enjoy!