Freeway Fighters Digest (week of 12/19)

Lauren MayerWeekly News Digest

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. Please note the next edition of the Freeway Fighters Digest will be shared on 1/6/23.

Join us next week for the last Freeway Fighters Monthly Meetup of 2022 on Wednesday, December 28 at 4pm ET. Join the Zoom Meeting at https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84259004521

Freeway Fighters news

Milwaukee’s Highway Expansion Will Make a Food Desert Even Worse – Jalopnik
Jalopnik December 17, 2022
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) plans to expand a 3.5-mile stretch of Interstate-94 in Milwaukee. 

Stop TxDOT, community groups move to save White Oak Bayou park – Chron
Chron December 17, 2022
Houston Community groups are hosting an event on Sunday, Dec. 18, at 1900 White Oak Drive from 3-5 p.m. to collect signatures for a petition seeking to designate White Oak Bayou as a city park—a move that would potentially stall construction of the controversial North Houston Highway Improvement Project through the area.

Gulfport Highway Project Endangers Historic Black Communities – Mississippi Free Press
Mississippi Free Press December 17, 2022
Gulfport activists have taken their struggle for environmental justice to the national level, naming the U.S. Department of Transportation and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg as defendants in a landmark lawsuit intended to halt a potentially disastrous road expansion project. 

Highway 401 is a beast. Time to stop feeding the beast | The Star – The Toronto Star
The Toronto Star December 17, 2022
Highway 401 is a beast that connects southern Ontario end-to-end.

Can a $10 Billion Highway Fix One of New Jersey’s Worst Traffic Jams?
The New York Times December 19, 2022
And, in the face of climate change, should it? A plan to widen the highway that leads into the Holland Tunnel is fueling heated debate.

Questions remain around impact of UDOT’s I-15 widening options – Axios Salt Lake City
Axios December 19, 2022
The question of how many homes or businesses might be impacted remains as the Utah Department of Transportation considers options to widen a 17-mile stretch of I-15 from Salt Lake City to Farmington.

Houston leaders, TxDOT announce agreement on highway expansion project – Chron
Chron December 20, 2022
After months of negotiations, Harris County, the City of Houston, and the Texas Department of Transportation announced an updated agreement plan among all parties for the controversial North Houston Highway Improvement Project at a press conference on Monday, Dec.19, at the Houston Downtown Library. 

Officials Support $9B Houston Highway Project, After Dispute – USNews.com
USNews.com December 20, 2022
A more than $9 billion highway widening project that is being proposed in the Houston area has the support of local officials after many of their concerns were addressed, they announced Monday.

How New Jersey Will Spend $10.7 Billion to Make Traffic Worse – Jalopnik
Jalopnik December 20, 2022
The plan to expand a vital 8.1-mile section of the New Jersey Turnpike, the Newark Bay–Hudson County Extension, is destined to fail. 

Mayor Adams Kicks off Landmark Study to Reimagine Cross-Bronx Expressway – NYC.gov
NYC.gov December 21, 2022
New York City Mayor Eric Adams today kicked off a landmark community-driven study to reimagine the Cross-Bronx Expressway, including examining the feasibility of decking sections of the highway.

Adams announces grant funding for study to reimagine the Cross Bronx Expressway
Audacy December 21, 2022
Mayor Eric Adams announced Monday plans to study a reimagining of the Cross Bronx Expressway which has long been a source of disparities in the borough.

Fixing Claiborne — the highway that split a Black neighborhood — could come down to 2 proposals
WWNO December 22, 2022
Louis Charbonnet III’s family prides themselves on having one of the biggest Black-owned funeral homes in New Orleans – and the prettiest.

Editorial: Is Houston’s I-45 compromise with TxDOT the deal we need?
Houston Chronicle December 22, 2022
Independence Heights has been here before.