Hi all,
Here is what is being said about freeway fighting this week. If you come across any articles, feel free to share and please let me know if you have any questions.
Join us next Friday, October 21 at 3pm ET for the October Freeway Fighters meetup. Please feel free to send Ben Crowther at ben@americawalks.org any items you’d like to be included on the agenda.
Direct zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/
Freeway Fighters news
City seeks federal transit funds to improve east-west connections along I-35 – Austin Monitor
Austin Monitor October 7, 2022
The city has hopes of securing federal transportation funds intended to reconnect communities severed from economic and other opportunities by transit infrastructure, specifically Interstate 35.
In the infrastructure bill, a measure that could address racial bias in highway planning
Philadelphia Inquirer October 8, 2022
There is magic buried deep within the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Atlanta councilman fighting to reconnect communities lost to I-75/85 connector – WSB-TV
WSB-TV October 8, 2022
Atlanta City Councilman Amir Farokhi and several other city leaders are pushing Washington D.C. to help fund a program to reconnect the communities that once lived where interstates 75 and 85 run through downtown Atlanta.
Activists call for action in replacing a segment of Interstate 94 – Sahan Journal
Sahan Journal October 8, 2022
Environmental justice advocates packed a recent public meeting to pressure the Minnesota Department of Transportation to replace Interstate 94 between Minneapolis and St. Paul with a smaller boulevard, and to express fear that the state is missing an opportunity by not applying for a federal grant.
Baltimore Seeks Federal Highway Removal Grant | Planetizen News
Planetizen October 9, 2022
Ashley Stimpson’s latest article in Next City begins with an all-too-familiar anecdote: a Black neighborhood, once woven into the surrounding city and its shops, parks, and services, is cut off by a freeway construction project, many of its residents displaced.
Royal Oak, 3 other cities join to seek grant for 11 Mile Road changes – The Oakland Press
The Oakland Press October 11, 2022
A grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation may help Royal Oak and neighboring cities make a number of changes, including road diets, along the 11 Mile Road corridor from Stephenson Highway to Greenfield Road in the next several years.
I-71 bridges eyed for overhaul to better connect Cincinnati neighborhood
The Business Journals October 13, 2022
Cincinnati wants to better connect portions of Evanston that have been divided for decades by the highway.
Syracuse Common Council approves application increasing transportation access
The Daily Orange October 13, 2022
The Syracuse Common Council approved a federal application Tuesday to support transportation access for communities historically cut off from economic opportunities due to poor infrastructure.
Federal Funds Can Fix Worn-Out East Harlem Bridge, City Hopes – Patch
Patch October 13, 2022
One of the first city projects to be funded through a new pot of federal infrastructure money could be the replacement of a decaying pedestrian bridge above a dangerous East Harlem intersection, which neighbors say has overstayed its welcome.
The Debate Over Replacing Highway 175 Is Ignoring a Crucial Piece of History
Milwaukee Magazine October 13, 2022
Washington Heights and Washington Park represent two sides of Milwaukee’s West Side.
It’s Not Just Highways. The Time For Street Reform Is Now. – Next City
Next City October 13, 2022
If you’re a driver, you notice highways.
Transit advocates criticize new regional transportation plan featuring expressway expansion
Chicago Sun-Times October 13, 2022
The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning adopted an update Wednesday to its decades long plan to allocate federal funding for large transportation projects in northeast Illinois that aims to improve public transportation infrastructure.
Reconnect Rondo: more than just a land bridge – Spokesman Recorder
Spokesman Recorder October 14, 2022
Advocates for a land bridge over I-94 in Rondo say their proposal goes beyond building over a freeway: They want to build housing, a way to generate Black wealth, and to right past wrongs.
Pierce County Council Pushes Back on Long-Planned Roadway Expansion | The Urbanist
The Urbanist October 14, 2022
As the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) moves forward on construction of the extension of SR 167 to the Port of Tacoma in Pierce County, elected officials on the Pierce County Council are voicing skepticism that even more roadway expansion in the area is actually aligned with the county’s goals and should take precedent over other spending priorities.
6 projects show how infrastructure spending is remaking the country – The Washington Post
The Washington Post October 14, 2022
In recent weeks, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has begun announcing the first major projects to get funding from the $1 trillion infrastructure law.