EDITORIAL: Seven Plus Years in Office and Still Can’t Plow a Street

EDITORIAL: Seven Plus Years in Office and Still Can’t Plow a Street

On Saturday the state closed down, drivers stayed home and everyone hunkered down.

The purpose was for people to stay off the roads for safety concerns, and so that plows would be unencumbered in treating and clearing the roads. 

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Now, four days later, Providence streets are still a mess. Every street and every corner is in a state of snowy disarray. 

For pedestrians, runners, students and dog walkers, it is a horror to move around the city.

For bikers, the city is impassible. Bike lanes -- many of which took over what had previously been driving lanes -- are still not cleared.

It is hard to find a street that is plowed from curb to curb. Some streets were not plowed until Monday.

Now, seven years later, it is apparent that the administration of Jorge Elorza is no more competent at providing basic city services now than when it began in 2015.

The mayor promised the city was ready. He posted to social media “Our teams are ready for the storm!"

Like Elorza’s management of the Providence schools or combatting violent crime, the mayor was equally "successful" in managing the snow. 

 

On Tuesday, Providence City Councilor Nirva LaFortune Tweeted the following conversation with her daughter.

My 11-year-old daughter is holding us accountable. This is our conversation after she walked home from school:

Me: how was your day?

N-S: Good, can you let the city know they did a horrible job plowing the streets.

@PVD311, straight from a @pvdschools kid and walker.”

Maybe LaFortune’s 11-year-old daughter can take over for the final 11 months of Elorza's tenure...or torture. She seems more interested in snow removal than the current mayor.

We couldn’t do any worse.