“Key West at Eye Level” is a reference to “The City at Eye Level”. I am going to keep this post short because I do not enjoy writing about depressing topics. As the below graph of the Cow Key Channel Bridge shows, Key West is experiencing a major year-over-year drop in bicycling. The Cow Key Channel Bridge is located between Key West and Stock Island. While the northern part of Stock Island north of US 1 is part of the City of Key West, the southern part south of US 1 is part of unincorporated Monroe County.
Since the homes on the northern part of Stock Island are usually more expensive than the homes on the southern part and most people who bike in Key West are low-income people, I think it is reasonable to assume that most of the people who bike live on the southern part of Stock Island. Many of these people, who likely work as low-income construction and hospitality workers in Key West, live on Stock Island because they can’t afford to live in Key West.
The southern part of Stock Island also has many Haitian and Hispanic residents. Many of these residents are in the process of losing their legal status. Many Haitian and Hispanic immigrants have told me that they no longer feel safe biking because ICE and other federal agencies have been focusing their immigration enforcement efforts on popular bike routes.
Haitians who have a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will likely lose their legal status and start being deported on February 3, 2026. Many Hispanics will also lose their legal status and be deported in 2026. How far do you think the year-over-year bike usage will drop for the rest of 2025 and in 2026 at the Cow Key Channel Bridge?
I want to end this post by sharing something fun that happens on the Cow Key Channel Bridge. I took the below photo on Easter. While the event likely did not have much racial diversity due to the nearby Haitian and Hispanic residents likely having to work on Easter, I am thankful that the fun event happens.
Future Blog Post
I hope to feel comfortable writing longer posts again someday. What do you want to read?
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I’m so sorry, Ray. We are all feeling the strain of preparing for the worst while trying to keep hope alive for the future.
My girlfriend and I talked with our therapist yesterday about the immigration situation. While I think the midterm election could be too late to prevent what is about to happen, our therapist said we need to be hopeful that the midterm election will prevent the immigration situation from becoming worse.
I’m so sorry, Ray. We are all feeling the strain of preparing for the worst while trying to keep hope alive for the future.