I-84 Replacement Project Should Connect, not Divide, Hartford

An op-ed by the Hartford Courant editorial board describes the mistakes of the I-84 highway in Greater Hartford, as designed and built in 1959 and 1969, before making an argument for contemporary planning concepts to guide the work of planning a replacement.

The editorial board describes the highway as an unmitigated disaster—an idea that even Robert Moses balked but could not prevent from moving forward. According to the editorial board, "the road was poorly designed, with substandard shoulder widths, poor alignments, dangerous left-handed entrances and exits, and closely spaced interchanges that create weaving conflicts between vehicles coming onto and getting off the road." Moreover, I-84 through Hartford averages more than four times the state average in vehicle collisions a day.

Now environmental planning is already underway for a replacement, and the editorial sees progress in how planners and designers are approaching the project, but conclude with an imperative: "We need to get it right this time."