Smiley accuses City Council of ‘overstep’ as he faces backlash over bike lanes

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Providence Mayor Brett Smiley is pushing back at an effort by some city councilors to take control over decisions regarding bike lanes, as fallout continues from his planned reconfiguration of South Water Street.

A group of councilors are introducing an ordinance on Thursday that would require the mayor’s administration to get the council’s authorization before removing any bike lanes in Providence.

“I think it’s a bad idea,” Smiley said on Wednesday night.

Smiley announced earlier this month that the bike lane on South Water Street, which links the East Bay Bike Path to downtown Providence, will be moved to the raised sidewalk to bring back two lanes of travel for cars. It’s a bid to ease traffic congestion caused by the closure of the westbound side of the Washington Bridge .

“We are adding a bike lane that is off-road, which is actually safer for cyclists,” Smiley said.

Councilman John Goncalves, who has led the charge against removal of the bike lane and is introducing the new ordinance on Thursday, said no data or traffic study has been shared by the administration to support why the Washington Bridge closure necessitates the South Water Street bike lane removal.

Josh Estrella, a spokesperson for Smiley’s office, told Target 12 that in addition to R.I. Department of Transportation traffic count data, a Fuss & O’Neill study commissioned by the I-195 Commission “indicates and highlights design concerns about initial construction and design of the bike lane on South Water Street.”

The study noted that while collisions decreased with the addition of the bike lane, drivers shared the concern that traveling in the area was “uncomfortable,” and the road is often congested due to deliveries, loading, and seasonal events like WaterFire.

The study’s authors ultimately recommended that the city should consider reducing the buffer width of the bike lane on South Water Street from seven feet to six feet, and increasing the adjacent parking lane width from seven feet to eight feet.

Estrella said the road’s design challenges have “only been exasperated by the closure of the Washington Bridge.”

“Moreover, as most drivers in the city can attest to through eyewitness accounts: the traffic congestion in this area, particularly during rush hour has been dramatically impacted by this closure,” Estrella added.

The city will hold community engagement meetings throughout the summer, according to Smiley, then “present the final plan for removal and plans for design to the Green and Complete Streets Advisory Council for their informational review.”

The mayor, fresh off of his second joint budget proposal and State of the City address on Wednesday, told reporters while it’s the Providence City Council’s prerogative to explore the ordinance, it is the administration’s responsibility to manage the city.

“That includes our administration of our roads,” the mayor added. “I think it’s an overstep of their responsibility.”

There’s been public outcry since the mayor’s announcement about the bike lane changes. On April 1, hundreds rallied outside of Providence City Hall calling for the mayor to leave the South Water Street bike path alone.

At an April 4 public hearing, dozens of people testified in support of keeping the bike lane in place. Hundreds of pages of testimony were also submitted on the record.

“He’s [Smiley] heard from constituents loud and clear, including constituents who live very close to that bike lane that they don’t want it removed,” Goncalves told Target 12 on Wednesday night. “We look forward to hearing what alternative solutions are that don’t include the removal of the bike lanes.”

Goncalves introduced a symbolic resolution opposing the removal of the bike lane April 4. It passed by a 10-0 vote, with a contributing factor for many councilors being the $750,000 of capital improvement funds needed to make the change to South Water Street.

The mayor noted that funding for South Water Street will use existing infrastructure dollars, and was not reflected in the budget he submitted to city councilors on Wednesday night.

The proposal from Goncalves has already garnered wide support from city councilors.

The ordinance is also being sponsored by Council President Rachel Miller, Councilor Sue AnderBois, Councilwoman Althea Graves, Councilwoman Mary Kay Harris, Councilor Justin Roias, Councilor Miguel Sanchez, and Councilwoman Vargas.

A total of 10 votes for the measure would be enough to override a veto by the mayor and have it become law over his opposition.

“The crux of it is to ensure that the council is exercising our checks and balances on the process, and that’s what we look forward to doing here,” Goncalves said.

The mayor argued that city roads, parking, and travel are constantly evolving.

“If the City Council starts legislating every possible change to every possible street, nothing will ever get done,” Smiley said.

Smiley stopped short of saying he would veto the ordinance if it reached his desk, and said he hoped he and the council could work on a solution “before it gets to that point.”

“Hopefully, cooler heads can prevail and we can not have to face that decision about what to do with the ordinance,” Smiley said.

Alexandra Leslie ( aleslie@wpri.com ) is a Target 12 investigative reporter covering Providence and more for 12 News. Connect with her on Twitter and on Facebook .

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