EDITORIAL: The Initial Decision Was Heartless, McKee’s Directive Deserves Kudos

Thursday, May 19, 2022

EDITORIAL

Let’s get this straight — Rhode Island children are suffering from a mental health crisis, childhood obesity is rampant, and there is growing concern that urban violence in Providence this summer will make the environment for youth even more difficult.

Children, and especially urban children, are up against it. Poor schools, violence in their neighborhoods, and simply a lack of concern.

GoLocal’s News Editor Kate Nagle was the first to uncover Rhode Island’s Public Transportation Authority's decision to slash the express beach buses that take city kids to the beach.

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It was not free to the families trying to escape the heat of the city and enjoy the "Ocean State" — it cost two dollars each way for each traveler.

RIPTA tried to argue that ridership was low; Joe Cole, the vice president of the drivers' union, said that was only because RIPTA barely advertised the routes. 

The decision to cut the runs -- with no public input -- was heartless. Gas is approaching $5 a gallon and the state has a nearly $900 million budget surplus as this fiscal year ends. 

After a series of stories by GoLocal shining a light on the RIPTA decision, Governor Dan McKee has intervened and instructed RIPTA to reinstate the beach bus.

Thank you to the Governor for directing RIPTA.

But the episode unveils that too often government is simply too disconnected from those they serve. Focused on bureaucracy, not the most in need.

This was looking like Davey Lopes pool, part II.

 

Here are some facts:

- In April, the American Academy of Pediatrics, Rhode Island Chapter (RIAAP) the Rhode Island Council of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (RICCAP), Hasbro Children’s Hospital, and Bradley Hospital issued a declaration of emergency regarding the state of child and adolescent mental health in Rhode Island.

- The schools in Providence, Pawtucket, and Central Falls, to name a few in RI, continue to be ranked among the worst in the United States.

- A GoLocal series unveiled the violence and crime at Providence's middle schools this spring.

As the state's budget is being developed and municipal budgets are being finalized, it is time to consider the implications of today's decision and the longer-term impacts.

Children, especially children who live in poverty, have little escape from their environment. They won't go on a big family vacation to Disney or rent a beach house for a week this summer. Summer in the city is hot and too often violent. 

Kudos to Governor McKee for instructing RIPTA to reverse course, but shame on those in Rhode Island's government for even contemplating such a decision to cut bus service for families in Providence to go to the beach.

This is an embarrassing episode.

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