Editorial: Private voices can still shape public policy

Posted 2/20/20

The closure of one lane over the Silver Creek Bridge will impact everyone in Bristol . Trips north will be more frustrating than ever. A quick run to the grocery store will take longer than ever. And …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Register to post events


If you'd like to post an event to our calendar, you can create a free account by clicking here.

Note that free accounts do not have access to our subscriber-only content.

Day pass subscribers

Are you a day pass subscriber who needs to log in? Click here to continue.


Editorial: Private voices can still shape public policy

Posted

The closure of one lane over the Silver Creek Bridge will impact everyone in Bristol. Trips north will be more frustrating than ever. A quick run to the grocery store will take longer than ever. And Metacom Avenue will be more congested than ever.

But it will be a lot better than it could have been.

When first revealed about a year ago, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (DOT) plan seemed preposterous. The entire bridge would be demolished, leaving no passage into and out of the downtown district along the town’s western corridor, for months. A former publisher of the Providence Journal declared it a “blockade” of the town’s historic district.

Immediate reactions were disbelief and anger, especially when DOT and town leaders obstinately stated there were no other options. At the forefront of the opposition was a small band of downtown merchants who feared, quite reasonably, for the long-term health of their businesses.

As they protested, and then protested more, two things happened — more people joined their cause, and DOT became more obstinate. Repeatedly, DOT affirmed it was the only choice for the tiny Silver Creek Bridge, even as it boasted of the hundreds of bridges and billions of dollars of repair work being undertaken throughout the state. The message was clear as well as transparent — we are doing enormous things, and we don’t really have time to worry about this small thorn over in Bristol.

Yet still people protested.

Through letters to this paper, letters to the governor, in public meetings and in face to face meetings with town leaders, they pleaded for a different plan. Private citizens, many of them experts in fields of engineering or geology, joined the chorus of opposition, suggesting alternative plans to replace the 16-foot span without blockading the densely populated downtown.

Eventually, all that hooting and hollering from Bristol got through to the folks in Providence, and DOT announced a new plan in the fall — one lane would stay open at all times. All it took was a little creativity and about $300,000.

Jen and Chip Cavallaro, Stephan Brigidi, Patrick Barosh, Halsey Herreshoff and too many others to mention deserve credit for demanding better service from their public servants. They demonstrated, once again, that individual citizens, when engaged, informed and motivated, can not only speak for themselves, but affect real change. Whether speaking for a silent majority, confronting big government or advocating for a better community, they can make a difference.

Everyone in Bristol should be thanking these outspoken citizens. Traffic will be frustrating for the next six months, but it could be so much worse.

2024 by East Bay Media Group

Barrington · Bristol · East Providence · Little Compton · Portsmouth · Tiverton · Warren · Westport
Meet our staff
Mike Rego

Mike Rego has worked at East Bay Newspapers since 2001, helping the company launch The Westport Shorelines. He soon after became a Sports Editor, spending the next 10-plus years in that role before taking over as editor of The East Providence Post in February of 2012. To contact Mike about The Post or to submit information, suggest story ideas or photo opportunities, etc. in East Providence, email mrego@eastbaymediagroup.com.