Environuts Create Ski Slopes Out of Streets
terribly early in the morning on Wednesday, the 24th of December 2008 by Katie
MIKE SIEGEL / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Sections of Denny Way, seen looking east toward Capitol Hill, remain closed from several snowstorms in the Seattle area since last week.
Yes, that is a picture of a major northern US city. And no, budget cuts aren’t to blame.
Worried about the amount of salt and chemicals that could bleed into the Puget Sound, the city of Seattle has made the conscious decision to not remove the snow.
Yes “snow pack” is the new way to go in Seattle.
But it turns out “plowed streets” in Seattle actually means “snow-packed,” as in there’s snow and ice left on major arterials by design.
“We’re trying to create a hard-packed surface,” said Alex Wiggins, chief of staff for the Seattle Department of Transportation. “It doesn’t look like anything you’d find in Chicago or New York.”
Wow, that sounds safe. I’d love to see the accident statistics at the end of this winter. Somehow, I think that they’re going to skyrocket.
The city’s approach means crews clear the roads enough for all-wheel and four-wheel-drive vehicles, or those with front-wheel drive cars as long as they are using chains, Wiggins said.
Sounds like the only vehicles that are driving are those evil, carbon causing “monstrosities”. Why is it that environuts keep changing the “goal”?
As you could imagine, this snow pack could impact emergency response.
… leaves many drivers, including Seattle police, pretty much on their own until nature does to the snow what the sand can’t: melt it.
The city’s patrol cars are rear-wheel drive. And even with tire chains, officers are avoiding hills and responding on foot, according to a West Precinct officer.
Let’s hope no one has a true emergency. The responders might have to “hoof it” to the scene.
To make this decision even more absurd, Seattle is laying a layer of sand on the roads. Sand can provide more traction, but it does nothing to melt the ice. And sand has it’s detrimental effects:
Many cities are moving away from sand because it clogs the sewers, runs into waterways, creates air pollution and costs more to clean up.
Do environuts ever look before they leap?
To read more, Click here for Michelle Malkin’s site.
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December 24th, 2008 at 6:10 am
Merry Christmas to all here from all of us over the water.
December 24th, 2008 at 6:37 am
Merry Christmas to you and all of yours. May be New Year bring you joy!
December 25th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
hum what else can the environuts do?
perhaps revert back to the horsedrawn firetrucks, but the animal activists would claim that is cruelty to animals.. so i guess maybe the bucket-brigade, but oh but there are those who would consider that wasting water.. um so other options.. how about we gather and meditate about the flames?
and for the police, again can’t do the horses.. so maybe bicycles.. which would go great on those ice-packed steep hills in seattle.
and everyon in seattle should just opt for sleds during the winter time.. cause there would be no enviromental reprocussions.. and since the streets are icepacked they could get to places quickly.. though back is another story..
and reverting back to the story, higher accidents with the snowpack.. i wonder what the enviromental impact will be with all those accidents, seeping fuel, scrap from the accidents.. perhaps they are hoping to just reduce the human numbers, hoping for more deadly accidents?
great finds katie!
December 26th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
I think that the environuts will only be happy when the planet is rid of the “human virus”.
I think that they should “throw themselves under the bus” by trying that “zero population growth” thing. After a generation of that, they can tell us how it works out….
December 30th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
katie I am with you.. they should lead by example.. then we could have that ill gone, and hopefully no longer reproducing & infecting our world..
ahhh utopia!