Rats, needles and trash. That’s what Bostonians posting to 311.boston.gov cite as problems on city streets, and the sort of nuts and bolts issues Nicholas Gove should focus on in his new role as Interim Chief of Streets.

Gove was appointed by Mayor Michelle Wu after Jascha Franklin-Hodge resigned last month. His tenure was marked by the brouhaha over bike lanes, a winning issue in progressive circles, but not as broadly embraced by residents.

Boston’s burgeoning bus and bike lanes under Franklin-Hodge’s leadership drew backlash and ultimately led to a review last spring that concluded the engagement from the Streets Cabinet was “heavy-handed.”

“During the 30-day review meetings, we heard consistent feedback that project communications and community engagement were inadequate, that decisions seemed pre-determined, and that processes too often did not achieve consensus, contributing to a loss of community trust,” stated a city memo issued at the conclusion of the review last April.

While all this was happening, Bostonians still had to deal with discarded needles, dead rodents and other detritus on the streets. It’s hard to get excited over a new bike lane when you have to step over sharps on the way to work.

A glimpse at 311.boston.gov reveals the residents’ issues of the day: overflowing trash, lack of crosswalks, missing road signage, broken signs, illegal dumping of trash, dead mice and rats, and needles. Plenty of needles.

This isn’t the exciting stuff that get’s unveiled with a City Hall photo op, it’s the quotidian quality of life issues that are just as important.

Gove will have a lot on his plate if winter wallops the city. Bus-riding Bostonians may not particularly care if the lane is in the middle of the street as much as they want it to be accessible in snow. Can passengers get on the bus easily, or will they have to climb a pile of packed icy slush to access the stairs? The same goes for street corners — getting curb cuts plowed and paths made clear is key to getting around the city in a snowy winter.

We wish Gove luck if a storm hits hard enough to warrant the innovative “space savers” that mark a plowed parking space as hands-off to interlopers.

Gove was promoted from his most recent post as deputy chief of streets for the Boston Transportation Department, a position he’s held since April 2023. His new title is chief of streets, transportation and sanitation.

Bostonians aren’t looking for flash, and ordinary residents don’t care for bold, generational change in bike lane implementation as they do for safe, clean, needle-free, accessible streets and walkways.

Gove has to build back the community trust that was lost during Franklin-Hodge’s bus and bus lane blitz, and focusing on everyday problems will go a long way toward that.

It’s unknown if Gove is in an interim position on the way to a permanent spot, or if he’s in the spot temporarily. Either way, we wish him luck and offer this bit of advice: Listen to Boston residents.

Editorial cartoon by Gary Varvel (Creators Syndicate)