Highway Boondoggles: LBJ East Expansion in Dallas, Texas
This is the kind of Robert Moses legacy that must be undone or stopped. Photo: Texas Department of Transportation
In their fourth Highway Boondoggles report, U.S. PIRG and the Frontier Group profile wasteful highway projects that state DOTs are building across the country. Today we highlight the LBJ East Expansion project in Dallas, Texas. The costly expansion of an already enormous highway will create a roadway with 14 lanes plus two frontage roads.
Texas officials have proposed a $1.6 billion road expansion of the LBJ East, a highway that partially circles northeast Dallas about 10 miles from the city center. The project would add two lanes to the 10-lane highway, as well as two lanes of frontage road on either side of much of the highway, creating 16 lanes of roadway in total.
The new lanes will result in more driving and more pollution. According to one project document, building the lanes will result in more emissions of toxic air pollutants like benzene, formaldehyde, and diesel particulate matter compared to the “no build” scenario.
Meanwhile, Texas and the Dallas area have other urgent transportation needs, including the improvement of local rail and transit service. Because of limited funds, Dallas Area Rapid Transit, or DART, is being forced to decide between a number of transit improvements, including new rail lines and improved bus service. DART is also looking into building a subway, for which cost estimates range from $950 million to $1.3 billion.
Building the LBJ East expansion would also add to Texas’ already massive debt. As of February 2018, the project is in limbo following the Texas Transportation Commission’s decision to not include toll roads in the state’s plans, following extensive political backlash to the proliferation of toll roads in the state. However, officials are still working to move the project forward.
Read More:
Stay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from Streetsblog USA
Friday’s Headlines Don’t Feel the Need for Speed
Tell me again, which constitutional amendment is it that gives people the right to drive as fast as they want?
Komanoff: IMHO, TMRB is A-OK
Here’s what’s to like about the Traffic Mobility Review Board's central business district toll recommendations. It's a lot!
Talking Headways Podcast: The Sexy World of Bus Speeds
When you start to add up the numbers, you can see why agency leaders would be interesting in finding ways to reduce those costs.
Thursday’s Headlines See Daylight
Daylighting, or removing parking near intersections, is an often overlooked way to improve pedestrian safety.
Why So Many U.S. Drivers Think Speeding Is Perfectly Safe
Do Americans hit lethal speeds because they're in a rush, or because they have no idea that they're increasing their chances of death with every tick of the odometer?
