More than 100 members of the public poured into Providence City Council chambers Thursday night to oppose Mayor Brett Smiley’s plan to remove bike lanes from South Water Street and replace them with an extra lane of car traffic. Smiley believes the change will alleviate congestion caused by the westbound Washington Bridge closure. The city council also passed a measure last night formally opposing the plan.
Residents and council members shared concerns over safety for pedestrians and cyclists alike, the cost of the project, and whether it will actually help with traffic. Some people also raised concerns about how the mayor’s plan would change the look and feel of the neighborhood. Maurice Collins, owner of the Wild Colonial Tavern on South Water Street for 25 years, was one of them.
Today, his bar has a pleasant view of a bike lane, a park, a pedestrian bridge over the Providence River, and gently sloping willow branches. But it wasn’t that way when he moved in.
“It was sort of a post-apocalyptic Running Man kind of dead zone for a long time,” said Collins, referring to a dystopian Stephen King novel.
Since then Collins says the area has been revitalizing. One important change, Collins says, was when the city replaced one of the two lanes of car traffic with a bike lane in front of his bar in 2021. He said it made it safer and more pleasant to be in the area.
“The drag racers and the dirt bikes, and the wheelie popping and all that, that stopped when the bike lane went in,” he said. “I wouldn’t even let my kids walk across the street when they were young to go and see the ducks. It was too dangerous.”
The half-hour public comment portion of Thursday night’s meeting had time for 30 speakers. All but one of those people opposed the plan. Additionally, 294 people sent in letters of opposition. The council received just one letter of support for Smiley’s plan.
Residents worry having more cars on South Water Street will make it more dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists who prefer to bike on the street. They’re also worried about the dangers pedestrians would face sharing a sidewalk with cyclists. People have also raised concerns about cost. The whole project, including installing a raised crosswalk, is expected to cost $750,000 to complete.
John Goncalves, the councilman for Ward 1, where the bike lanes are, wrote the resolution in opposition to Smiley’s plan. He says the mayor has not provided any data to demonstrate that South Water Street is actually seeing extra traffic due to the westbound Washington Bridge closure.
“So to manufacture some kind of crisis that doesn’t exist,. tThat just feels very disingenuous. And it’s also a slap in the face of the people who feel like this is the right infrastructure for them,” he said.
A spokesperson for the mayor said in a press release that the city and Rhode Island Department of Transportation have been looking at traffic data in the area since the bridge closure.
Goncalves’ resolution received widespread support at the meeting. The council ended up passing the resolution to formally oppose the bike lane removal 10-0 with two abstentions.
Ultimately, Smiley does not need the approval of the council to remove the bike lanes.
The bike lane removal would not be imminent. A spokesperson for the mayor said the city will conduct public engagement meetings through the summer and then present a plan to an advisory council.