Transportation Link-fest!

Posted by Bil on August 6, 2004 04:52 PM

Of the nation's 75 largest cities, Providence ranks ninth most difficult city to navigate by car. Woohoo! Top Ten, baby! This is right, though:

"I would rather have our winding, historical streets than the bland, wide streets of a grid system," said Thomas E. Deller, director of the Providence Department of Planning and Development. "It adds to the charm and beauty of New England cities, just like the European cities."

I wish someone would rank the best cities to navigate by foot. I think we'd have another top-ten spot.

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So they want to widen 32 miles of interstate highways in RI. You ever get the urge to just grab someone and shake them? That's me and the DOT right now. I thought it was finally sinking in that adding a lane to a congested area doesn't alleviate traffic, it just creates another lane of backup. I guess not. And actually, part of the plan calls for widening an uncongested area, because, uh, well... Our ProJo reporter knows where the story is:

Henry Sherlock, who represents the state's construction industry, also backs the Rhode Island road-widening project. "The problem is already there," he said, and alternative transportation systems "are not going to get rid of these cars."

Go figure. How about this one, though:

"It would be a lot less expensive per mile" to widen the southern part of Route 95 than to widen it in the dense urban areas it crosses farther north.

What?! What does that have to do with anything?! It would be a lot less expensive, per mile, to not throw money at unnecessary projects!

Luckily this is all much ado about nothing, as the suggestion was low on the to-consider list for RIDOT. Hopefully these knuckleheads won't be around when the plan actually comes up for review.

No wider highways. No double-decking. No more accommodating sprawl and throwing our money down the freeway pit.

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Thinking about congestion in southern RI, though, gave me a good idea. Instead of widening 95 South near the Connecticut border, why don't we knock it down from two lanes to just one? Instead of easing the potential congestion there, it will be constant! As you may know, millions of Rhode Islanders' dollars literally flow to CT just an couple exits into the Nutmeg State. What better way to stop the cash flow than to slow the traffic flow? Perhaps while sitting in the ungodly traffic it would occur to folks that maybe tossing quarter after quarter into a slot machine isn't actually that fun, and certainly not worth the hassle of gridlock.

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Meanwhile, as RIDOT tries to imagine ways to blow nine-figure allocations, RIPTA is facing its annual budget deficit, needing about $1.75 million to cover a shortfall. Threats of reduced service and cut routes are making their yearly appearance.

Public Transit funding is one of my favorite little vicious cycles. Transportation policy sabotages public transit, by, say, widening a highway to literally pave the way for rapid suburban expansion, ridership goes down, thus lawmakers see fit to cut the PT budget, which lowers service quality, which drives people away from PT, which precipitates more cuts (hey, ridership is still down...) and on and on.

Listening to AM radio this week, though, it occurs to me that RIPTA should start sponsoring the traffic reports (as of now, warnings of accidents and congestion are brought to you by cool, refreshing Dunkin Donuts iced lattes...). What better way to suggest transit alternatives to people stuck in traffic? (I'd also like to see one of those billboards that say "Don't like the traffic? You ARE the traffic")

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Speaking of RIPTA, this week's email newsletter had an interview with RIPTA's planning manager Tim McCormick. This guy "gets it" (can we send him to RIDOT?!) Excerpts:

Who's the biggest pain ?you have to deal with?

People who don't take the bus and have decided that there is no room in the world for people who do, regardless of the applicable laws. This includes businesses and churches (believe it or not) that don't want a bus stop in front of their property, even though it has every right to be there, and property owners who want bus routes removed from their streets.

If you could institute by fiat one environmental reform, what would it be?

A $4 per gallon gas tax -- and fund transit with the proceeds.

Would you label yourself an environmentalist?

Yes, because I believe we should each personally use as little land and resources as possible to get by. I don't have a lot of baggage about it. For me it is like being polite to strangers or not. It is a way to treat other people, animals, and the planet itself.

What's one thing the environmental movement is doing badly?

Attracting the political right.

If you could have every ... reader do one thing, what would it be?

When you travel to another city, always look to see if you can use public transit exclusively. You will learn something about the place and its people that you never would have otherwise, and I guarantee you will have some fun.

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Finally, we end on some good news. West Bay commuter rail isn't dead! The new date for construction of the Warwick train station is 2006, and if I remember correctly this was supposed to start in 1997. The Warwick Station has to be one of the biggest no-brainers in the last couple decades, as TF Green Airport is the closest airport to major rail lines in the country. Such a no-brainer, in fact, a cynic would be surprised it's still moving forward.

Apparently, the latest delay was in dealing with Amtrak about adding a few more rails, but that seems to be squared away now. So really, this time, 2006. Please?

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