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Reconnecting Communities

Op-Ed: Reviewing America’s First (and Last?) Federal ‘Reconnecting Communities’ Pilot

The Biden administration exhausted the funds of the first-in-the-nation Reconnecting Communities program before they left office. But how did they spend the money — and what can we learn about how to do better next time, if advocates ever get another bite at the apple?

February 5, 2025

‘A Big Deal’: Buttigieg’s Final Grants Give Hundreds of Millions To Sustainable Transportation

Secretary Pete's parting gift to America includes big money for bikeways, highways-to-boulevards projects, and more.

January 15, 2025

How America’s Mayors Are Fighting Back Against Harmful Highways

Mayors across the country are fighting for funds to heal harmful highway expansions. But what does it take to make an application stand out?

October 29, 2024

The People Behind America’s Game-Changing Local Infrastructure Grants

The Biden Administration unlocked unprecedented opportunities for local leaders to build transportation infrastructure without their state governments getting involved — if they could beat out the competition. We talk to three mayors who cracked the code.

October 28, 2024

Reconnecting Communities: Are We There Yet?

Advocates warn: to reconnect communities, you have to listen to them.

October 21, 2024

How Cities Are Getting Creative To Reclaim Public Space for People

Putting in parks and plazas isn't the only way to reimagine "public spaces" around the needs of people, a new report argues — and if we do it right, these projects can be a powerful tool for equity and health.

September 3, 2024

The Biggest Wins — And Disappointments — From the ‘Reconnecting Communities’ Grants

"Until we overhaul our transportation system to redirect the majority of funding into community-oriented infrastructure investments, we will keep failing to meet our equity, climate, and maintenance goals."

March 22, 2024

Mixed Reviews for ‘Reconnecting Communities’ Grants

The Biden Administration funded some very worthy projects, but there were also a few head-scratchers in there.

March 14, 2024

Is the Environmental Racism of the Past Repeating Itself in Buffalo’s Expressway Project?

The construction of the Kensington Expressway devastated a predominantly Black neighborhood in the 1960s. And some advocates fear a new proposal to cap it won't be much better.

Is Detroit ‘Reconnecting Communities,’ or Missing an Opportunity?

Detroit won a $100-million federal grant to study replacing a highway with a boulevard. Some say the plan doesn't go far enough.

November 3, 2023