The Reconnecting Communities Act would provide funding for retrofitting highway infrastructure and reconnecting neighborhoods cut off by road projects.
West Baltimore's notorious "Highway to Nowhere," a project "once intended to connect I-70 to downtown and link it to I-95 and I-83" but stopped due to community opposition, could be revitalized as part of a new federal grant program proposed by U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin. As reported by Ron Cassie in Baltimore Magazine, the Reconnecting Communities Act "would establish a U.S. Department of Transportation grant program as part of President Joe Biden’s $2.25 trillion American Jobs Plan and assist communities in removing or retrofitting highway infrastructure that became an obstacle to mobility and economic opportunity."
The highway segment, while never completed, still had the effect of "dividing Black neighborhoods and serving as a stark example of the long history of inequity in infrastructure," according to Senator Van Hollen. The project displaced "more than 970 homes, 60 businesses, and 1,500 local residents." Since the halt of the project, a variety of redevelopment schemes have failed to come to fruition. The Red Line, a proposal to build a light rail line on the highway's median, was nixed by Governor Larry Hogan in 2015.
In 2018, "the Urban Land Institute—on behalf of the Baltimore Development Corporation—put together a report that suggested increased pedestrian infrastructure, more accessible green spaces and parks, and a retail hub and grocery store for the area could bridge the neighborhoods on each side of the highway. That study also suggested maintaining a 20-foot corridor in case the Red Line, or another mass transit project, is revived."
Mayor Brandon Scott praised the bill as a step toward "building a better Baltimore that eliminates concrete barriers to economic mobility and opportunity."
FULL STORY: Federal Lawmakers, City Officials Want Funding to End ‘Highway to Nowhere’
The Freeway Removal Cause Gains Momentum—But Don't Forget Gentrification and Displacement
The case for freeway in urban areas isn't as unequivocal as it might seem. Plans to undo the damage of the legacies of past freeway planning need to ensure an inclusive future.
How Highway Removal Can Benefit Cities
Cities across the country are reevaluating the impacts of major highway on neighborhoods and looking for ways to revitalize and reconnect communities.
Reimagining the Urban Freeway
With the new administration placing racial justice and equity at the forefront of transportation policy, will America finally reckon with the legacy of its freeways?
New Study Ranks the Urban Heat Island Effect in U.S. Cities
A new analysis by Climate Central evaluates the intensity of urban heat islands in cities around the United States—New Orleans tops the list.
The Most Complete Map of U.S. Pedestrian Risk Yet
New research published by the Journal of Transport and Land Use analyzes tens of thousands of pedestrian fatalities over 16 years in the United States.
The Freeway Removal Cause Gains Momentum—But Don't Forget Gentrification and Displacement
The case for freeway in urban areas isn't as unequivocal as it might seem. Plans to undo the damage of the legacies of past freeway planning need to ensure an inclusive future.
Ascent Environmental
Ascent Environmental
Brailsford & Dunlavey
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Harvard University Graduate School of Design - Executive Education
City of Greensburg
City of Flagstaff
Zhongshan Municipal Bureau of Natural Resources
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.
