When I think of winter in New England, what comes to mind first are the lyrics to “Little Plastic Castle” by Ani Difranco:

i pick up a magazine
which is every magazine
and read a story then forgot it right away

they say goldfish have no memory
i guess their lives are much like mine
the little plastic castle
is a surprise every time

Except you can replace the first person references with something like “people living in Connecticut.” It snows every year. It seems that people have to relearn this fact and everything associated with it. Driving in snow means going slowly and not slamming on the brakes. It means remembering that when there are snow-related parking bans, we can all move our vehicles to public school lots so that we do not create huge piles of ice in the street by having our illegally parked cars interfere with the ability of plows to adequately clear snow.

And it means having to reeducate the powers that be that not everyone chooses to travel by motor vehicle. In this case, the powers that be are those in control of the plows and shovels. These photos, taken about two weeks apart, show the same stretch of sidewalk in Bushnell Park. If you travel through this area, you could not have ignored the way that snow was not removed. One segment of the sidewalk would be cleared, and then whomever was in charge of this job just stopped. No way through. And, a walk through the park this morning showed that the situation was never corrected. For some, this is an interruption of a leisurely walk in the park. For others, it’s a roadblock on the way to work; even with snowboots that reach my knees, it was challenging to pass through this area up until a few days ago when warmer temperatures melted much of the snow. How are those who can not get around as easily supposed to deal with this?

People seem to forget about the needs of pedestrians and cyclists. While the City of Hartford sent out press releases reminding property owners to clear sidewalks and curb cuts, the City itself utterly failed to do these things. I can not tell you how many snowbanks I had to step on and over to cross streets. Some people will walk in the street if paths are not cleared; this is inviting pedestrian versus motor vehicle accidents, yet when strollers and wheelchairs can not get through, what are people supposed to do?

From these photos, you can see that people walk and ride bicycles even when snow is on the ground, maybe especially when snow is on the ground. When it’s cold and buses are behind schedule, it’s often easier to just walk. When the roads are bound to be gridlocked, riding a bike is more convenient. Why is it so difficult to clear paths and acknowledge cyclists’ needs by not covering bike racks in mountains of snow?

Maybe by the end of this winter, those who are getting paid to remove the snow will figure out how to do so.