The City Responds

Here's an email I sent the city the other day:
 I am a bicycle commuter and I would like to know why residential streets are being cleaned before some of the major roadways? For example I commute down 102 Avenue into downtown and I have seen street cleaning crews working on residential streets near 137Street, yet 102 Avenue has a thick layer of sand near the curb which causes me to ride further out into traffic which is dangerous for both me and the busy traffic on 102.
Thanks!

The city's response:
Thanks for your e-mail concern. We do have priorities we follow and major roadways are higher but there is other considerations that come into play as well such as safety of our personnel. We do not want our crews on major roads during peak traffic volumes which is typically during the day. The high volume or high speed roadways are done at night when volumes are lighter and safer and we can achieve greater productivity. Downtown also has more on the street parking during the day then during the night. Businesses also wouldn't appreciate their customers having no place to park if we swept it during the day. Most people work during the day so there cars are gone during the day meaning there are less parked cars in the way for residential sweeping. So residential street sweeping is a good fit during the day when the major roadways are experiencing high traffic volumes. By taking these considerations into account we are achieving a better and more effective job on nights and days.


Since you are a faithful reader of my blog, you'll know that I'm no expert on grammar (I don't do it good). But for me to find three obvious errors in one email leads me think that our fair city's administrators might want to schedule grammar lessons for their employees.

Where I work we have to fill out our work goals for the year which I think is just the company's way of getting more work out of us for the same pay.  I can only imagine a city employee's reaction to having to enroll in grammar lessons.  "Call the union!  I'm not doing this crap on my time!!"

The building in which I work is shared with the university and to reach our company vehicles it is necessary to amble down a long corridor that bisects a number of classrooms.  While English as a second language seems to be the main topic that is taught in these hallowed halls, I'm sure that accomodations  could be made to teach grammar to city staff.

The halls that are crowded with young students from other countries would now be filled to overflowing with older students wearing their plaid shirts and no - iron pants from Mark's Work Warehouse.  The ladies would be in stretch pants and sensible shoes.  The odd employee would still be sporting a florescent vest and the stubborn ones would continue to wear their steel - toed boots.

I would welcome their attendance in our shared hallways and maybe, just maybe as I walk to my vehicle I could ask one of them when exactly do they plan to clean up the sandbars on 102 Avenue?