Safety on the Monon

For my readers who are out of state, the Monon Trail in Indianapolis is a 15 mile trail that runs from Downtown Indianapolis at 10th Street all the way north into Carmel past 126th st.

Recently, pedestrians and bikers have been attacked while on the Monon Trail, albeit usually in parts of the Monon that aren’t exactly in “great” areas.  That being said, the reaction of the police and park rangers has been pretty typical.

“There’s a higher visibility of IMPD (officers) and park rangers on bikes and in vehicles,” Freund said. “We understand how important it is that people feel safe (emphasis mine), and we’re working with IMPD to do just that.”

“Feel safe”.  Not “be safe”.  To “be safe”, you have to take responsibility for your safety and security into your own hands, you have to be proactive about being safe.  To “feel safe” you have to believe that the police and park rangers will protect you even though there’s no way they can be everywhere at once.

Real safety has nothing to do with the police, or park rangers – it has everything to do with you as an individual being situationally aware, being mindful of your surroundings, and being ready and capable to deal with the threat of violence should the need arise.