Slow crawl during flood unnecessary
In our view: Motorists could have done more to alleviate traffic during soggy crisis
Residents of the capital region should be proud of how we conducted ourselves and continue to do so in the literal wake of flood waters that caused so much trouble in the area last week.
Emergency officials did an excellent job, organizing and executing action plans with precision under circumstances that ranged at times from confusing to chaotic.
Nevertheless, we feel there are lessons to be learned, and many of those lessons ought to be personal ones, not institutional.
City police officers did an excellent job of directing traffic on downtown streets late last week as they endeavoured to contend with heavy traffic, caused by the road and bridge closures in the region. We noticed that not all motorists were comfortable or familiar with the old-school method of traffic management, but fortunately, there were no reports of any major mishaps.
Yes, officers did a good job directing traffic, but we can't help but wonder if the citizenry didn't heap too much work on them.
Traffic congestion around the Westmorland Street Bridge was expected, but we feel that at times it bordered on the ridiculous. Our thoughts turn now not to how well we handled it, but how much of it was necessary.
How many motorists in those long lines along city streets had to be in their cars? How many had to travel downtown, and of those who did, how many had to travel by car?
Environmental awareness has never been as prominent in the collective global consciousness as it is in the 21st century. We know we need to cut down on our fuel emissions.
On top of that, it seems one can't go 15 minutes these days without hearing complaints about soaring gas prices, and justifiably so. We all talk about how we're going to need to drive less because we can't afford to fill our gas tanks as often.
Despite those concerns and the limits the flood placed on our ability to travel around the capital region, we were still out in our cars in throngs, spending time in traffic, idling our gas guzzlers, for amounts of time we normally associate with commutes in the world's largest urban centres.
The city provided free transit May 2, at the height of the flood. We wish we could applaud the municipality's decision to provide the service for free at a time when easing traffic was needed the most. Unfortunately, Free Transit Day was something that had been planned a month in advance.
We call upon the City of Fredericton to formulate and promote a transit plan it could put in place in times of emergency. Our transit system is one way the city serves its residents, but it can also be a tool to help them in times of crisis. After all, in Fredericton, it's not a question of if another flood will come, but when.
Regardless of a lack of free fares or emergency transit plans, it's not the city that should shoulder the responsibility for commuters' actions (or inactions). Far too many of us chose not to avail ourselves of that option.
There were other options that could have eased our transportation trials and tribulations. In this day and age of e-mail and call forwarding, we have to wonder how many of the office workers who slowly made their way across the bridge really needed to do so.
Telecommuting is a viable option in the 21st century for many professions, and too often, office workers and managers aren't imaginative enough when it comes to thoughts of the workplace.
We're not suggesting that we abandon traditional workplaces altogether, but certainly in a serious situation such as a flood, some flexibility about where and how we do our jobs is in order.
Forgive what has been to this point a chiefly critical tone. We recognize and applaud the efforts and choices of those who did do just what we suggested above. Some people are practising what everyone is preaching.
With any luck, we'll see more people joining that conservational congregation in the near future.
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