Democracy in action

Our happy little town decided the other day to restripe a busy 4 lane main artery to a 2 lane road with a buffer zone and bike lane. Instant chaos. The city manager stated in the paper that this was done to promote the bicycle friendly image of the city. The only image that the residents wanted was one of his head on a pike. In front of City Hall. The city council sensing the anger of the hoi polloi wisely disavowed all knowledge of the changes and ordered the City Manager to appear before the crowd to appease them before they marched on city hall with torches and pitchforks. Kurt even got into the act by sending two emails to everyone in city government demanding that the road be restored as before and also wrote to the newspaper (they published his letter).

The meeting was tonight at a grade school. I went and so did Craig as an observer for a boy scout merit badge 'communications'. There was a lot of communications going on at that meeting! I have to hand it to the City manager; it was a decidedly unfriendly crowd but by the end of the meeting most were smiling. The journey from beginning to end was a bit rocky but no folding chairs were thrown and no one's ancestry was called into question. I even stood up and spoke as a commuting cyclist (good credibility) who could do without the bike lane. The reporter from the Signal got my name and phone number so either I will be mentioned in the paper or they will call me to extend my subscription. In the end the city compromised by restoring the 4 lanes and adding a narrower bike lane. Democracy in action!