flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Feds may fund removal of some urban highways

Codes and Standards

Feds may fund removal of some urban highways

Senate bill proposes pilot program to reknit communities.


By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor | February 16, 2021

Courtesy Pixabay

A new Senate bill includes $10 billion for cities that are considering removing urban freeways that could undo damage these projects inflicted on vulnerable communities decades ago.

Critics say these urban highway projects, often including sections of elevated roadways, were forced upon neighborhoods that lacked political clout during construction of the Interstate Highway System. Many of these roadway projects razed swaths of downtowns and waterfronts often inhabited by minority and low-income people.

The bill provides $10 billion to potentially alter or remove these roadways. It would also help pay for plans to redevelop strips of land reclaimed from their removal.

The concept was demonstrated when San Francisco’s Embarcadero Freeway was removed in 1991 after heavy damage resulting from a 1989 earthquake. That project freed 100 acres of waterfront property for development. Another more recent example is in Rochester, New York, where a segment of a sunken expressway that encircles the city’s downtown was removed, and the city is now considering removal of the rest of the loop.

Related Stories

Codes and Standards | Feb 14, 2020

At least 13 states create incentives for utilities to use demand response programs

Practice optimizes power grid, incorporates more renewable power.

Codes and Standards | Feb 13, 2020

Living Future Institute’s JUST program helps measure progress on sustainability, social justice

Functions as a transparency platform for organizations to disclose their operations.

Codes and Standards | Feb 12, 2020

Commercial Building Energy Saver Wins R&D 100 Award

Software toolkit enables access to deep energy retrofit and zero-net energy strategies.

Codes and Standards | Feb 11, 2020

Fenestration Rating Council launches faster energy performance testing system

New windows, doors, and skylights will get to market faster.

Codes and Standards | Feb 7, 2020

Landlords scramble to comply with the New York City Council’s Climate Mobilization Act (CMA)

Intent is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; improve efficiency for buildings larger than 25,000 sf.

Codes and Standards | Feb 6, 2020

New document to determine THERM finite element modeling surface temperatures released

Process often used to predict interior surface temperatures on fenestration.

Codes and Standards | Feb 5, 2020

HUD issues guidance on emotional support animals

Clarifies the responsibilities of rental housing providers and renters.

Codes and Standards | Jan 31, 2020

Colorado ranks first in LEED Top 10 states

Rankings of states for LEED certified square feet per person released.

Codes and Standards | Jan 30, 2020

Dramatic demographic shifts poised to alter global workplace

By 2030, Millennials and Generation Z will dominate workforce.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Sustainability

Grimshaw launches free online tool to help accelerate decarbonization of buildings

Minoro, an online platform to help accelerate the decarbonization of buildings, was recently launched by architecture firm Grimshaw, in collaboration with more than 20 supporting organizations including World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), RIBA, Architecture 2030, the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) and several national Green Building Councils from across the globe.




halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021