Keeping Our Community Clean

by Sarah McLaughlin '23 on February 9, 2023
Editor-in-Chief

Editor's Column

Pick Up After Yourselves, PC

“Darty” season is once again upon us, and for those who remain blissfully unaware of what this entails, don’t expect it to be pretty. Each weekend, the Providence College student body never fails to demonstrate blatant lack of respect for their neighborhood, the environment, and their fellow Friars’ off-campus homes by littering cans, bottles, vape pens—you name it—across lawns, sidewalks, and streets.

When we come to college, most of us want to be treated like the adults we are. But it’s impossible to be treated like adults if we act like children. Littering is irresponsible, disrespectful, bad for the planet, and a physical manifestation of entitlement and laziness. There is absolutely no reason to do it, and it is so easy to not do. Even on campus, where, like the blue light system, you can’t stand anywhere without seeing at least one trash and recycling bin, we wake up each Sunday morning to cans, bottles, coffee cups, and broken glass all over the ground.

Surely you wouldn’t do the same to your own house or your yard at home. So why is it okay to disrespect our campus and the surrounding community?

For years, ECOPC has been hosting Eaton St. cleanups, where a dozen or so volunteers head out before most students are awake on a Sunday morning with gloves and trash bags to pick up all the garbage. This year, one cleanup was the morning after Halloween, so costume pieces and decorations were added to the mix. Not only does this demonstrate the same blatant laziness and disrespect to our off-campus community, but it also shows a huge wastefulness problem. Most of these costumes and decorations were probably just purchased, only to be immediately thrown away—and don’t even reach the trash bin.

The 02908 Club also has their own clean-up crew who takes care of messes on the weekends, and students leasing the houses face serious fines for litter at the end of the school year. Underclassmen littering at these seniors’ houses could be costing them upwards of $250. Two weekends ago, the 02908 Club workers spent seven hours picking up trash from PC students.

Unfortunately, it is impossible and unnecessary for ECOPC members and the 02908 Club crew to clean the streets and campus every day. PC students have to start taking accountability for their own actions. There are so many easy ways to avoid littering—carrying your drinks in a reusable cup, bringing empty bottles and cans to recycling bins (Are you missing one in your dorm? Email recycle@providence.edu), and reminding your friends to do the same. It’s easy to have fun on the weekend without disrespecting the community and the environment.

Saying Goodbye to the Eaton St. Bike Lane

by The Cowl Editor on October 24, 2019

Campus

The bike lane was devisive among locals and the PC community. Nora Johnson ’20/THECOWL.

by Max Waite ’21

News Staff

Upon moving back on campus this semester, students were greeted by a drastic change on nearby Eaton Street.

As part of the “Great Streets Initiative,” Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza approved of 60 plus miles of bike lanes scattered throughout the city of Providence. Eaton Street was the first street to be reconstructed.

The construction was finished the week of Sept. 9, adding a double bike lane on the side of the street. Lieutenant Eric Croce from the Office of Public Safety described the repaving process by saying, “It was like it happened overnight.”

While the construction project seemed to sneak up on locals nearby, it ended up being short-lived. The construction received backlash from those who live in the area surrounding Eaton Street, who were also surprised by the project.

According to Steve Maurano, associate vice president of public affairs, community & government relations, the repaving process of the .75-mile bike lane could be restored to its original condition as early as Monday, October 21. It cost $63,500 to construct, while the repaving process will cost $64,000.

Last month, there were two community meetings that were held at St. Pius School as a result of the double bike lane. Council members in attendance for the first meeting were David Salvatore, Jo-Ann Ryan, and Katherine Kerwin representing Wards 14, 5, and 12.

Many locals in attendance found the project to be rushed and not well thought out. Some locals actually thought that Providence College wanted the bike lane. But this decision was entirely the city’s, and the overall consensus was that a bike lane is not a bad concept, but the city should have looked for more community input on the abrupt project.

Locals are not too happy about the taxes they are going to have to pay as a result of the failed project either. Ultimately, it was a common theme that Eaton Street was the worst location to premiere the city’s widespread bike lane initiative.

A couple of years ago, Maurano got a group of faculty members together who all enjoyed riding bicycles to discuss the use of “jump bikes” around the Elmhurst area. Maurano said that faculty members were “supportive of the concept, but the streets in the area were not equipped to handle bicyclists.”

To add to the project’s overwhelming sense of haste, there were many factors that the city did not take into account.

Maurano went on a ride-along with Lieutenant John Dunbar from the Office of Public Safety to experience the changes on the road. According to Maurano, there were a couple of spots on their drive where tree trunks nearly took off the side mirror on the public safety truck as a result of the incredibly narrow road. One could only imagine the difficulties that drivers would face in even bigger vehicles.

Additionally, the lanes were so narrow that other cars veer into the opposite lanes and face head-on with traffic. When turning onto Eaton Street, drivers have to go all the way into the other lane in order to make a proper turn, as well.

Though these dangerous instances are just a couple of examples as to why the double bike lane was not thought through, Maurano expresses several more concerns in a letter that he sent to the city of Providence while construction was underway.

Among issues addressed in the letter included trash pickups for PC off-campus residents living on Eaton Street as well as snow removal. Both of these concerns are crucial because the yellow poles between the lanes prevent these jobs from effectively being accomplished without difficulty.

With these concerns in mind, think about who would be using this double bike lane. It seems evident that the lane was not used nearly as much as the city anticipated, and that is most likely because the lane is not even a mile long.

If someone is an avid bicyclist, or even just wants to go out on a ride, they most likely will want to ride longer than three-quarters of a mile. Once the Eaton Street lane ends, there are not any connecting bike lanes in the area anyway.

Many streets in Providence have the potential to feature a bike lane, but it was quickly proven that Eaton Street is not on that list.