COLONIE — For 16 years, Felipa Martinez-Garcia walked the same path nearly every day as she made her way to her job at McDonald’s.
The journey started alongside the four lanes of fast-moving traffic on Troy-Schenectady Road. Sidewalks are spotty there, at best, and pedestrians are often forced into the roadway by ice or snowbanks. Felipa walked the road no matter the weather.
Miraculously enough, a well-maintained sidewalk suddenly appears after Old Loudon Road heading west toward Latham Circle, but the benefit didn’t last for Felipa as she evaded the circle and walked to the right along a ramp that carries cars to Route 9. There, the sidewalk disappears as quickly as it arrives…