Eighth Street, Oct 13^th

Most of the time the right wing pundits provide a windmill to charge against but today I’ll look at the city commission of Traverse City and their reaction to feedback on the new Eighth Street look. Eighth Street had been two lanes each way; that was reduced by yellow striping to one lane each way with a middle turn lane and bicycle lanes on each side. This was to be a provisional proposition to see how it would work out and how the public would like it. If it worked then the lanes would be permanently altered by grinding out the asphalt surface to receive the paint.

A survey was required but this wasn’t a scientific survey, there was no random selection of respondents. Even so, 24 hundred people responded to the survey and about 15 hundred of them were unhappy with the new look. For Traverse City that’s a lot of unhappy people. (In most surveys like this unhappy people are much more likely to make their concerns known; just look at the current political situation.) In the last election of the city commission it took only about 2000 votes to assure a win for the candidate. A candidate promising to return Eighth Street to its old look might be a shoe-in in the next election. The current commissioners might keep that in mind.

Then we have an interesting bit of data on the accident rate with the new look. There were 44 percent more accidents and double the number of personal injury accidents. What fun for those drivers’ insurance rates! There goes your accident free insurance discount; thank you commissioners. (I wonder if any commissioners sell automobile insurance.)

Commissioner Gary Howe claimed that these accidents were the result of distracted driving and driving too fast for conditions. How many total automobile accidents don’t involve driving too fast for conditions or the driver distracted by something? The commissioner added that “once the drivers get used to the new conditions the accident rates will go down.” (It’s only been a year; it can take a while.) Then he claimed that “all the literature suggests this would be a safer street.” Would he rather believe the “literature” or his own lying eyes?

In the commissioner’s meeting some changes were suggested but Commissioner Werner asked. “What are we trying to accomplish other than that we are appeasing some people?” If you don’t want to “appease” the people who elected you commissioner, why did you run for office? If it was to impose your views on the citizens you work for you won’t be working for them much longer!