Nate Gustafson ’29

by Nate Gustafson ’29 on February 12, 2026

On the average weekday, over 41,000 Rhode Islanders board a Rhode Island Public Transit Authority bus, and many of those trips begin, end, or require a stop at the infamous Kennedy Plaza in downtown Providence. What has historically served as a hub for civic engagement and multi-modal transportation is now viewed by many as one of the least desirable places to go in the city. Although the adjacent ice rink and park bring some sense of brightness and lure people to the area, many make it a point to avoid the plaza in its entirety due to its reputation as an epicenter of illegal and dangerous activity, particularly at night. This image renders the plaza as little more than an obstacle to be avoided, and a hindrance to getting people to “Try Transit,” as Rhode Island Public Transport Authority advertises at our basketball and hockey games. 

As students at Providence College, we are given free, unlimited usage of RIPTA bus services. The college makes sure to sell you with this benefit during the application and touring process, and yet hardly anybody actually takes the bus. In fact, there are often so many Ubers occupying the bus stop area that the bus has to park in the middle of Huxley Gate instead, blocking traffic and causing delays. But as someone who likes to get the most value out of my college tuition, I opt to take the bus frequently. As such, my girlfriend and I often find ourselves waiting in Kennedy Plaza for the 55 bus back to campus after spending time in the otherwise nice city of Providence. However, as the 55 only runs every 45 minutes, we are often forced to wait an extended amount of time, and often in the dark, which leads to many uneasy and nervous moments. 

I have experienced these less-than-ideal feelings firsthand on numerous occasions. I recall one night in December, when we were followed and subsequently sized up by a man dressed in all black, forcing us to call an Uber back to campus as we did not feel safe loitering in Kennedy Plaza any longer. This situation was relatively minor compared to what others have experienced. One of the first results on Google informs you of an axe-wielding man attacking a 60-year-old gentleman, lacerating his torso. Another tells of a 23-day period in 2024 when there were 11 assaults, or just about one every other day, in the plaza. An NBC story describes a 20-arrest drug bust taking place there. And yet, despite all of this criminal, dangerous, and otherwise creepy activity, the Providence Police Department is almost never seen patrolling in and around Kennedy Plaza. 

I believe the solution is simple: deploy at least one police officer to Kennedy Plaza during all operating hours. An improved sense of safety and security would do numbers for RIPTA’s ridership and customer satisfaction, and solve the most obvious problem in their system. I would wager that more Rhode Islanders, especially college students, would feel safer riding the bus if there was a police presence in the area to cut down on the crime and shady activity. For a city and state that have placed such an emphasis on getting cars off the road, and have pitched their public transportation network as the solution, it seems like a no-brainer that police should be stationed to patrol one of the highest crime areas in the city that also happens to double as the terminus of two-thirds of the state’s bus routes. But, clearly the Providence Police Department feels that their resources are better allocated elsewhere, which is why Kennedy Plaza will forever remain as the glaring Achilles heel in the otherwise resurgent city of Providence.