Annapolis Capital Punishment

The first two snow “events” of the season, which were little more than just minor dustings, brought out our State Highway Administration to the Eastport Drawbridge in full force, resulting in a thick spreading of some sort of ice-melting chemical on the bridge‘s sidewalks. This thick coating of quickly-dirtying crystals remained for days if not weeks each time and actually resulted in making walking more hazardous during that time.

Yes-it is SHA’s responsibility to clear the bridge during snow events but the inches-thick spreading of this “salt” slowly finds its way into Spa Creek. Alderman Sam Shropshire quickly reacted to the concerns of Capital Punishment and residents and began inquiring and communicating first with Annapolis Public Works and then with the office of the SHA District Engineer, which originally misplaced his electronic inquiry.

While it’s not clear what transpired, it seems that during the latest wintry-mix event, SHA either got the message, or did not “salt” the bridge walkway at all. Despite nearly sub-zero wind chill temps, Capital Punishment rode his bike to downtown and saw the bridge walkway was clear a couple days after the storm.

Capital Punishment has long noted how walkers are treated as second class citizens, subservient to the needs of cars, and this is especially evident during snow storms (another topic for another posting), but in this case, it appears that common sense and good government has won out--thanks to Sam Shropshire and the SHA. Let’s keep a “weather eye” open for the next winter event and see if SHA really got the message.