If perception is in fact reality, the state Department of Transportation needs to step up its efforts to educate the public about the Route 195 relocation project.
In this week’s Providence Business News “Executive Poll” (see page 3) a wide range of business leaders were asked if they are confident that the state will be successful in completing the massive project on time and within budget.
The results were definitive, to say the least. Of those who responded, 96 percent said they were not confident the project would be completed on time and within budget.
Another question asked whether the respondents were confident that the city and the state would take advantage to the fullest of the land opened up as a result of the highway’s move. That result was split evenly.
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It’s possible to place a portion of blame for this perception on our neighbors to the north – where the city of Boston lumbers toward the completion of the wildly over-budget “Big Dig.”
But that does not fully account for Rhode Islanders having so little faith in a project that is expected to cost at least $320 million and take as many as 11 years to complete.
There is no question regarding the need for the project. The highway in question, running from Route 95 to the pedestrian bridge on Route 195, is showing signs of the state’s lack of maintenance during cash-strapped times. In several locations concrete has fallen from bridges. And the Thurbers Avenue curve, for example, is a dangerous stretch of highway.
According to the state, the relocation of Route 195 will create a more direct, straighter highway – one safer for motorists and more effective in handling traffic.
And once completed, the project is expected to open acres of prime development land and reunite neighborhoods with downtown Providence.
We hope the state, particularly, the DOT, sees this project as an opportunity to prove the public wrong.
These days, the public demands – and deserves – details. It is the public, after all, that is footing the bill for the project, through a combination of federal and state tax dollars. The state should aggressively deliver to residents updates on the project and make available a running tally of whether it is being contained within its budget.
Yet another poll question this week asked respondents if they thought that the state – in this deficit-strapped year – should increase its efforts to repair roads and bridges currently in disrepair. By a wide margin – 82 percent to 18 percent – respondents said the state should indeed make such an investment.
This shows willingness on the part of the public to invest in our highways and roads. That’s a good sign for DOT. The public does have an open mind and a desire to travel on safe roads. Now it’s time to give the public reason to display more confidence that such goals can be accomplished – on time and within budget.
Praise for Dorcas Place
Tomorrow night (Tuesday, Jan. 22) 22 students of the Dorcas Place Parent Literacy Center will receive their GED certificates.
Why is this important?
Companies are becoming plugged into the idea that our community agencies are fertile ground for finding talented, hard working employees. Single parents who stick with a literacy and job training program, while feeding and clothing a family on a limited budget, display a certain quality that most companies seek — a willingness to work hard and see a challenge through to its completion.
“These students have worked extremely hard and are now positioned to move on successfully with their lives,” said Brenda Dann-Messier, executive director of Dorcas Place.
So congratulations to the Dorcas Place graduates – and to those companies smart enough to extend their recruiting efforts to include such individuals.
