I drove to work that morning and there was no sanding or salting being done even though the storm was coming. The freeway was well taken care of, but the hills and other roadways had nothing. Sure enough, a few hours in we have a major crash on 21st Avenue East. That is a major roadway and the city should be ashamed when there are major accidents on it. How can we get up the hill? Can the city focus on just one way up the hill for those who have to go to work when there is a little snow? Last year during that ice storm the police had to call in plows on Missabe. I read there are priority roads plowed because of complaints, but 21st Avenue East is major and should be safe. 

When I came home from work 21st was jammed from accidents, people were standing in the road on 19th Avenue as several cars were blocking the road and smashed up. The people were blocking the road so others didn't go down and hit their cars (probably not the smartest move to stand on an icy avenue). Tried to go down another avenue even less plowed and had to drive into the curb to stop. This was despite going slower than walking speed. 

We knew it was coming and it wasn't a major storm, but the city waited too long and was too late in clearing the arteries to get up the hill. 

I hope the next time we can have at least one or two ways to get up and down the hill plowed.

What about just 53 up the hill? Main artery and still can be hazardous or impassible if you have to stop at the light at Piedmont. 21st Avenue East is a major artery, but of course Duluth in their backward thinking made it into two lanes instead of 4. Now everyone is trapped and traffic snarls up. Maybe change the type of grade or road near McDonald's and just before 4th Street where it seems to be a problem. Maybe put a little effort into building a passable road up the hill for those that HAVE TO be at work regardless of conditions. 

I sat through all of the meetings when the city decided to "calm" traffic down on London Road by repainting the lines. The city sent out surveys to the entire town and there were just enough "calm thinkers" in this city that decided it would be better to go from 4 lanes to 2. Now it is just one line of traffic and dangerous if you have to go straight across. Thanks City of Duluth! Thank you for not listening to those of us that went to every single meeting where the vast majority of residents that drive the road daily and live on it voiced their opposition. The example given was how great of a job the city did in "calming" traffic on Arrowhead Road. Does "calming" traffic mean creating speed-traps or creating frustrating traffic jams? 

So 21st is now one lane up and one lane down thanks to our city planners. It backs up down the freeway now and has clogged a major artery. If one car gets stuck everyone is getting stuck. To ask the city to plow the thing and make it passable isn't asking a lot. That whole street should be able to handle way more traffic. These college kids from the Twin Cities don't stand a chance getting up the hill or down it.

Since you lit the fire under me by defending our city, let me ask, why are there SO many stoplights on 21st? Why when you go on 19th Avenue East do the people going up and down the hill have to stop? Wouldn't it make a lot more sense to have the avenue cars stop to allow us to get up and down the hill without creeping out beyond cars parked up to the corner or overgrown hedges? Which city genius came up with the idea that the Avenues shouldn't stop, but the all of the streets should (just bringing it up because of the 4 car pile up at 19th and 3rd street during the last storm. Also for me having to drive into the curb going 2 mph down 18th because of the accident on 19th with everyone standing out on the road. 

Maybe it will take some out-of-town kid from the Twin Cities getting killed for the city to take notice?

Which genius of city planning decided to make everyone coming off of HWY 35 (Southbound) and exiting at 21st Avenue West have to yield and look behind their car to merge onto HWY 53? If you come from Wisconsin you can see the exit very clearly and it would be much easier to yield to cars coming up a poorly built and planned ramp. As an old man when my neck starts to creak it will be mostly because of that stupidly built ramp and yield sign. 

Arrowhead Road is another outdated POS piece of planning up here. 30 mph for the only road out of town from the East side. As that builds up it will only get worse, but as someone who grew up where every road was pretty much 55 mph with houses along it I cannot understand why that road was "calmed"... I'll let you know when I ever encounter a single car driving 30 mph on that road.  Sure it probably is necessary when all the college kids park in their front yards, but after you pass Kenwood it is dumb to go that slow. 

There is no direct path from the East side of town to the mall area and Hermantown that is safe for travel in the winter. There is no safe route to get up the hill from the bottom during a storm and that doesn't bother anyone else? Have the colleges pitch in a few bucks to get their students to school. The colleges never cancel classes and will dock students points if they cannot get there. So your choices are to stay home and get a lower grade for a course you were forced to pay thousands of dollars for, or risk you life and your car because the plows have to go to some neighborhood that complained the most to get plowed first. 

Stupid.

Operator error? The computer blew and it was $1500 and could only be done by the dealership. I don't ever want another Subaru - I'd rather slide in my 1997 Geo Prizm all the way down the hill. Funny thing is I get to work through every storm in that little Geo with front wheel drive.

I must say, thank you city of Duluth for taking care of 21st Ave East this morning! Granted Woodland turning to College Street was impossible once I tried to get going from a stop, but that whole intersection is dumb to begin with. Why have a light up one block, but none at College Street - one of the busiest intersections in the area?

Sure I had to back down 19th and 20th Avenues this morning after my car got halfway up, but 21st was good going up. Now just hit that turn at College Street and I will be happy!