Some people have nothing better to do than complain and not accept responsibility. This storm dumped about 6" of snow along with about 8 hours of freezing rain and sleet. It was one of the nastier storms I've seen in awhile.MADISON, Wis. -- As Madison prepares to dig out from under more snow, some are calling for a better plan of action when it comes to city plowing.
Three Madison Common Council members are calling for action after receiving complaints from downtown residents. Marsha Rummel, Brenda Konkel and Satya Rhodes-Conway said they want some stricter guidelines to ensure city plows can clear a path on all streets.
Tom Powell said he was just trying to drive home Thursday when his car got stuck in snow on Paterson Street on the isthmus. "I was trying to go up a hill, and the snow plow hills are just too high, and I slid back and ended up being buried right in one," Powell said. "(While) digging myself out, I saw five other people get stuck, so it's a pretty dangerous little hill." With a push and some time, Powell was able to dislodge his car, but he said he hasn't been pleased with the condition of roads. "I have not been impressed with the plow jobs in general -- on this street and or a number of other streets," he said, While that street might be an extreme case, city leaders have been getting complaints and said they are taking notice. "The downtown has some special problems. The main one is that we have a lot of folks who don't have off-street parking, so, they park on the streets. When the snow falls, they don't move their cars and then that creates a real problem for us in terms of cleaning up after a storm," said Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz. "We do need to look for ways to address that issue." Rummel, an alder for District 6, said she has been taking suggestions and noting ideas. "One of the ideas was to have a 'Snow Action Day' sort of similar to the summer when we have a 'Clean Air Action Day' when there is too much pollution. How can we make people aware that there is an issue to get off the streets? The ramps are available for people who live close to the downtown; maybe we can work something out with Metro?" Rummel said. Free Metro bus rides and extended hours for free parking at public ramps are just some ideas. Another idea is raising fines for parked cars that block plows, which could save drivers like Powell big headaches. "I was here a good 20 minutes, digging away," Powell said. Rummel said she is still taking suggestions and that no formal proposal has been made yet. Cieslewicz said he thinks many of the suggestions already made are worth trying to explore.
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