The Tragic History of Highways Demolishing Cities — It’s Not Over Yet

This video from Vox provides an excellent overview of how the Interstate Highway System wiped out whole city neighborhoods in the post-war era.

It’s hard to believe that federal and local officials ever thought it was a good idea to uproot urban residents to clear paths for highways, but what’s even crazier is that we’re still doing the same thing today.

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

Sober Non-Partisan Analysis: America Wastes a Ton of Money on Highways

|
A good deal of the $46 billion the federal government pours into highway spending each year is going to waste, according to a new Congressional Budget Office report [PDF]. The conclusion won’t surprise regular Streetsblog readers, but it’s the source that’s interesting. The CBO is not an advocacy group or an ideologically-minded think tank. It’s a non-partisan budget watchdog charged […]

Indiana Just Building Highways for Highway Building's Sake

|
There’s a fixed mindset in many corners of the country, perhaps especially in the Midwest, which holds that highway building is an unquestioned economic good. Aaron Renn at the Urbanophile captures it perfectly in this quote borrowed from a friend: “Highways and bridges and casinos are their answer to every problem: Tax base eroding? Build a […]