R.I. Department of Transportation Director Peter Alviti Jr. is right when he says state and Providence officials have spent too many years spinning their wheels trying to come up with a new downtown transit plan for city buses.
No matter what proposal is settled on, it is certain to have critics. But those critics are sure to be much louder and garner more community support when they aren’t allowed to weigh in before a final proposal is adopted.
As this week’s cover story reports, that’s what’s adding considerable fuel to the fire of opposition to the state’s Providence Multi-Hub Bus System proposal unveiled in July.
The new plan keeps about one-quarter of the routes at Kennedy Plaza and adds destinations at Providence Station and on Dyer Street. Easing congestion at Kennedy Plaza is a good thing, particularly for downtown businesses.
But opponents of the Dyer Street hub fear it will exacerbate already challenging pedestrian and bicycle safety issues in the area, among other concerns.
While the state presented its proposal to community groups, it did so as a mostly finished product. That’s left those groups understandably frustrated.
Alviti, however, says RIDOT has listened to feedback, made changes and privately reexamined alternatives to Dyer Street, finding they are not feasible.
For the project to move forward, RIDOT and its partner, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority, need to show at a public hearing why critics are wrong. After years of false starts, the state needs to do more to prove why this proposal is different from its failed predecessors.