The road isn't a better option but issues with grass in residential areas:

• Tree roots and other trip hazards
• People parking their 5 giant SUVs and pickup trucks on them (this can happen on sidewalks too, but it's often worse)
• Dog shit that is less visible
• Road design is usually more hostile when there aren't sidewalks since they don't even consider the existence of pedestrians
• Sometimes it's not grass so much as mud, particularly when flooding has occurred recently (which has gotten more common as climate change has advanced).
• Running on a sidewalk (or road) is better for reducing injury despite grass feeling softer (since it's more uneven).

And on the larger sidewalks you can ride bikes on them relatively safely.

Agreed with preferring to walk on grass than the road, but the grass here is thick, uneven, and patchy. Very easy to trip or get stuck going through a section that hasn't been mowed in months.

If they had instead just made a sidewalk, things would be much easier. Especially in the areas that have sidewalk ramps that lead to nothing but grass. Laziness.