Same goals, different goals

Considering the ambitious goals local government has for Spokane, could it be that in all the excitement, they sometimes run into each other?

The City Council admirably wants use of all renewable energy by 2030 to combat global warming and as Mayor David Condon points out, the city is currently converting its truck fleet to compressed natural gas and increasing bike lanes to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

We celebrate getting 1,500 to 3,000 jobs, depending on the season, at an Amazon fulfillment center on the West Plains. Yet even now both the freeway and Sunset Boulevard are backed up at “rush hour” with cars crawling in stop-and-go traffic. How much greenhouse gas is added to the atmosphere under these conditions? How can that possibly not be made much worse with increased traffic, by eliminating a traffic lane on Sunset and adding a bike lane which the city is currently doing? Is this another case of “feeling good about ourselves” as a recycling manager said about recycling glass even though the city loses money on it?

I honestly want to understand how the city’s goal of decreasing greenhouse gas emissions is furthered by impeding efficient motor vehicle traffic flow.

Paul Unger

Spokane