Recent Streetsblog USA posts about Highway Expansion

3 White Elephants That Help Explain America’s Infrastructure Crisis

By Angie Schmitt | Sep 30, 2015 | 22 Comments

A new report by the Center for American Progress zeros in on an under-appreciated culprit in America’s much ballyhooed infrastructure crisis: All the money we waste on useless roads. CAP highlights three “white elephant projects” that illustrate how billions of dollars in federal infrastructure funds are squandered thanks to a lack of accountability in the transportation funding process. “States receive federal […]

Two Highway Lanes Won’t Fix Baton Rouge’s Traffic Problem

By Angie Schmitt | Sep 4, 2015 | 1 Comment

Everyone agrees there’s a traffic problem in Baton Rouge, but not everyone is sold on the state’s plan to address it. The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development’s solution, presented this week, is to add two lanes to Interstate 10 through the Southdowns neighborhood. The widening will cost $350 million and require the demolition of a […]

Louisiana Raids Its Maintenance Fund to Pay for Road Expansions

By Tanya Snyder | Aug 7, 2015 | 2 Comments

This year, Louisiana will raid $21.6 million from its road maintenance fund to pay for road projects, including some expansions, that have been on the books since 1989. The state will have to keep stealing from the fund for the next 27 years to pay for them. Voters approved a package of 16 road and bridge […]

HUD Tells Cleveland: Don’t Let Opportunity Corridor Go “Horribly Wrong”

By Tanya Snyder | Jul 7, 2015 | No Comments

It was a sad day in Washington, DC, last year when Harriet Tregoning left the DC Office of Planning. But it’s becoming clear that she’s a great addition at HUD. In her capacity as the agency’s principal deputy assistant secretary for community development, Tregoning issued a stern warning to the city of Cleveland and Ohio DOT last […]

Scott Walker’s Own Party Rejects His Milwaukee Highway Boondoggle

By Tanya Snyder | Jul 6, 2015 | 1 Comment

Governor Scott Walker might be too busy campaigning for president to care, but the Wisconsin legislature handed him a rebuke last week, rejecting his plans for debt-fueled highway expansion. The Republican-controlled legislature’s Joint Finance Committee trimmed about 35 percent off Walker’s proposed $1.3 billion in borrowing for highways. If approved by the Assembly and Senate — a big […]

The Pendulum Swings Away From Highways on the Dallas City Council

By Tanya Snyder | Jun 17, 2015 | No Comments

A runoff election Saturday has solidified who’s in and who’s out of the Dallas City Council. At stake were the future of two highway projects: the construction of the Trinity Toll Road and the removal of I-345 to make way for walkable development. Highway opponents gained ground, though not enough for a majority. Before the election, four of 14 votes […]

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