Some of the more preposterous suggestions I’d heard to make Cascade more safe is to build an underpass or an overpass, or move the college. The last suggestion is obviously least likely. Like it or not, the college is there. It ain’t gonna move. An overpass or underpass? And how do we try to “encourage” students to use it? I can’t imagine them “choosing” to do so (nor would I) if running late to classes. Funnel them to the over or underpass with big concrete walls that prevent them from crossing Cascade in other places? Now isn’t that attractive? You think the community might complain about the eyesore?

To me, reducing the traffic to single lanes makes much more sense. For those complaining that it would cut off a thoroughfare to the downtown area, it doesn’t. It just makes it a slower and more thoughtful drive. You still get downtown. And if people aren’t already driving slower and thoughtfully on Cascade now as it is – well, they have no business driving there anyway.

Seriously, I think the truth is people dislike the narrowing of Cascade because it would take away the sport of trying to time the crossing of students just right when driving through Cascade.

If it were his or her child crossing Cascade, each citizen would see the logic behind this solution. But, typical of much what happens in our community, when our own pleasure is threatened (I’m not talking rights), the knee-jerk reaction is “CC is a bad community presence” whining session. We need to breathe and think. Surely this has been a thoughtful process – we can afford to give the college the benefit of the doubt here.