TxDOT Proposes to Dig a $1 Billion Infrastructure Grave in Downtown Dallas

For years now, TxDOT has considered removing Interstate 345 in downtown Dallas…only to conclude their study by coming up with a much worse plan.

Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (Transit Edition)

Don’t be fooled: Winnipeg’s newly proposed “rapid transit” project is actually a road-widening project in disguise. And it aims to borrow money so the City can destroy millions of dollars of its own tax base.

Freeway-Fighting Tide Has Turned

The halting of three in-city freeway expansions highlights a new momentum on reversing the damage of highways through urban areas.

Flying Blind: Why Public Leaders Need an Investment Grade Analysis

Portland and Oregon leaders shouldn’t commit to a $5-billion project without an investment grade analysis (IGA) of toll revenues.

#DotheMath, #InfrastructureCrisis, Infrastructure, City Observatory, Top StoryJoe CortrightJune 17, 2022Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure cost, infrastructure spending, Oregon, Washington, DOT, #DoTheMath, City Observatory

America *Must* End Highway Expansions

Until we have a credible plan for maintaining our existing transportation infrastructure, we must stop building more roads and bridges. Period.

Yet Another Exploding Whale: ODOT’s Freeway-Widening Cost Doubles

The Oregon DOT has experienced massive cost overruns on all of its largest construction projects…and has systematically concealed and understated the frequency and scale of those cost overruns.

#InfrastructureCrisis, Infrastructure, City Observatory, Transportation, Top StoryJoe CortrightJune 3, 2022Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure cult, infrastructure cost, infrastructure spending, Oregon, DOT, City Observatory, Joe Cortright, transportation

Fixing the Potholes Requires Digging Deeper

When it comes to our places’ roads, we need to start asking: “How much is this gonna cost us?”

#DotheMath, #InfrastructureCrisis, Infrastructure, Member Post, Top StoryMichel Durand-WoodJune 2, 2022Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure maintenance, infrastructure cost, infrastructure spending, #DoTheMath, Winnipeg, canada, Canada, member story

Cracking the Code on Fighting Highway Expansion Projects

When a highway expansion threatened to destroy a historic Black neighborhood in New Orleans, this advocate spoke out against it. Here’s how she made herself heard.

#NoNewRoads, Infrastructure, Success Story, Top StoryAmy StellyMay 18, 2022highways, freeway widening, freeway removal, freeways, urban freeways, Louisiana, New Orleans, success, success stories, #NoNewRoads, Infrastructure, infrastructure

When Libertarians Support Highway Expansions

A recent Reason Foundation newsletter thinks that Strong Towns is against all highways. We’re not. We’re against all highway expansion—and you should be, too.

#NoNewRoads, Infrastructure, Marohn, Top StoryCharles MarohnMay 16, 2022Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure maintenance, highways, freeway widening, freeways, politics, #NoNewRoads

A Minnesota Judge Throws the Book at Immoral Tax Assessments

This case shows why local governments need to do a better job accounting for maintenance costs.

Finance, Infrastructure, Marohn, Top StoryCharles MarohnMay 9, 2022maintenance, finance, local finance, municipal finance, Assessments, local government, infrastructure maintenance, Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure cost, Minnesota, Law

How to Make the Best Use of Funding for Infrastructure Projects

The infrastructure avalanche is coming… Is your town prepared?

Infrastructure, Top StoryStrong TownsMay 5, 2022Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure maintenance, infrastructure bill, how to, Local-Motive Tour

Process Versus Visible Outcomes

The U.S. Department of Transportation would have you think it cares about equity—but budgets are often more telling than rhetoric.

Upzoned, Podcast, Infrastructure, Federal Government, Race, Top StoryStrong TownsApril 27, 2022Podcast, podcast, Upzoned, Infrastructure, infrastructure, federal government, federal funding, race, Race, budget

The Brent Spence Boondoggle

Local leaders in Ohio and Kentucky are gearing up to make a multi-billion dollar mistake on this bridge equivalent of a highway-widening project.

#DotheMath, Infrastructure, Transportation, Top StoryRyan CraneApril 18, 2022Cincinnati, freeway widening, induced demand, highways, highway spending, transportation spending, Ohio, kentucky, Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure cult, infrastructure spending, #DoTheMath

The Grim Reaper of Small Towns

Our excessive expansion of the interstate highway system has destroyed urban downtowns—and it’s wiped out many small towns altogether.

#InfrastructureCrisis, Infrastructure, Sheppard, Transportation, Top StorySeairra SheppardApril 5, 2022highways, freeway widening, freeways, urban freeways, history, History, Small Towns, small towns, Infrastructure, infrastructure, transportation

TxDOT Ignores El Paso’s Needs To Make a Grab at Infrastructure Dollars

TxDOT’s latest boondoggle: a highway expansion that threatens to cut right at the heart of downtown El Paso.

#InfrastructureCrisis, Infrastructure, Transportation, Top StoryRobert StorchMarch 31, 2022highways, freeway widening, freeways, urban freeways, El Paso, Texas, transportation, Infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure spending

The Road That Killed a City

From its one-time status as one of America’s most prosperous cities, Hartford, CT, is now one of the poorest—no thanks to its mid-twentieth-century urban renewal projects.

Freeway Widening for Whomst?

Widening freeways is no way to promote equity.

Corner Liquor Stores vs. Fancy Shopping Malls

Let’s #DoTheMath on some public infrastructure in Providence, RI.

#DotheMath, Top StorySeth ZerenMarch 2, 2022Value Per Acre, #DoTheMath, suburban experiment, Infrastructure, infrastructure, public finance

Sowing Our Roads with Salt Is No Way to Grow Stronger Towns

Because we depend so heavily on cars, what happens when roads become too icy to drive on? The answer: road salt. But there are serious consequences to relying on salt for road-clearing.

We Need to Embrace Traffic Congestion, Not Fight It

We’ve spent trillions fighting congestion so that it’s easy to drive everywhere. But we’re fighting a losing battle, and simultaneously losing our ability to walk anywhere.