Picture of the week

Path to enlightenment

The now closed off Berkeley Pier at dusk as photographed from a higher vantage point.  This fascinating pier at its prime extended out into the bay for over 3 miles in a straight path toward Alcatraz Island and the Golden Gate Bridge.

I find it sad that this pier has been closed off to the general public for multiple years now out of concerns for safety (since July 2015).  Sadly due to the litiguous nature of our country, risk adverse bureaucrats have closed many differet public faciliites citing concerns for safety, wary of some accident that can be blamed on a railing or planck with some dry rot.  They avoid lawsuits, save money by not having to maintain the facility, and hold the public's use hostage under this excuse, while doing very little rectify the situation.  In my travels I have seen many cases like this that are frustrating, with no government official accountable for their lack of performance to change the situation or come up with some more creative ways to enable public access (e.g. foot traffic only, citizen group based maintenance, addressing the funding for existing resources before embarking on new projects).