the OP picture is not bad civil engineering, it’s great civil engineering doing exactly its job in a bad society.

It is bad civil engineering as in it costs more, does less and looks silly. I am stating that we have the same issues here, and the sidewalks are not at all standardized. The solution is not some massive societal upheaval and rebuilding of all infrastructure, but to just don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. The engineers in this case used more material, more complex forms, more design work to do a worse job. There is no more risk to the public unless you have some info I don't. Hell whats the risk of having sidewalks vs not having them (as most american places I have seen just don't have them at all)? What is so different in the us then Canada that a small strip of grass after the curb makes such a difference? This seems like more of that terrible american exceptionalism that bleeds over here.

Put the sidewalks in, don't overthink it unless you have the budget. That is all I am saying.