I am a long-time resident of Lorain, deeply ingrained in community life here. I cherished the practically of our city's layout, until a recent change drastically altered our day-to-day rhythm. Our town has now remodelled a major throughway, changing it from four lanes to two, supplemented with bike lanes and one center turning lane.

While the intention may have been noble, aimed towards more sustainable avenues of travel, the real-world impact has been less than gripping. The changes have heavily restricted traffic flow, doubled - and at times near tripled - travel times across the city.

The majority of Lorain residents share this sentiment and perceive the change as a gesture to merely utilize funding from grants, rather than a decision made considering public convenience or safety. In essence, this is not progress; rather, it is the creation of a bottleneck that hampers our daily lives without delivering any substantial returns.

In a city with over 64,000 residents, the decision to arbitrarily limit lanes contributes to unnecessary crowding and congestion, rather than benefiting traveling conditions. This has severe repercussions for all who rely heavily on these routes for their work, education, health provisions, and basic needs.

We urge the city officials to address this unplanned and impractical change, and to revert to the original four-lane traffic system on the major route through Lorain. We firmly believe this strike for change places the needs and experiences of Lorain residents at the forefront of city planning once again. Please sign our petition to restore balance and efficiency to our beloved city.