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> having more places to walk, bike, and explore that aren’t just cookie-cutter boilerplate-esque suburbs and freeways would be really nice. We're at a critical

> having more places to walk, bike, and explore that aren’t just cookie-cutter boilerplate-esque suburbs and freeways would be really nice. We're at a critical juncture here in the Twin Cities. The state DOT needs to re-build the interstate that cuts right through the entire metro area (I-94) for the first time since it was first built 50 years ago. There is a serious proposal to remove the interstate entirely and replace it with a street. This would be amazing, the area around I-94 is, as you'd expect, quite unpleasant to be in. It's noisy, dirty, and dangerous. The interstate is infamous for being one of those roads that was planned to run through and destroy working class and Black neighborhoods in the 50s and 60s[1], and removing it would go some way to regaining what had been room for people to live. I think it's a bit of a longshot, but dang, I would love to see the cities recover that space for the people who actually live here, not just those who are driving through it. It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I'm really hoping we don't blow it by just rebuilding the stupid thing. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_94_in_Minnesota#History https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_94_in_Minnesota#His...

hobs 3y ago
I live in the twin cities and I had no idea that was even on anyone's mind, I love the idea.
- coldpie 3y ago
  Please, please (please) contact everyone you can think of to support the idea. MnDOT has contact info on the Rethinking I-94 page[1], tell your city council rep, your county commissioner, your mayor, your state legislators, the governor. Tell your friends and neighbors. It's so easy to just fall back and do the same thing we've always done; making a change is really hard and we need to show that there is support for it. [1] https://talk.dot.state.mn.us/rethinking-i94 https://talk.dot.state.mn.us/rethinking-i94 The official term for the proposal to remove the freeway is "at-grade alternatives".
  - hobs 3y ago
    I will do this thing you say.
seanmcdirmid 3y ago
> There is a serious proposal to remove the interstate entirely and replace it with a street. I'm afraid that this would wind up like Vancouver, which lacks freeways through the city and has pretty bad traffic as a result. Better maybe to tunnel it under if possible? That works well for Seattle, although we still have I5 to contend with that divides the downtown from Capitol Hill (there is talk of lidding the entire freeway through downtown).
- stefan_ 3y ago
  All cities will forever have "bad traffic". Car transport capacity is plain abysmal.
  - mitthrowaway2 3y ago
    Tokyo's traffic is pretty reasonable, actually. It's quite surprising. I rarely encounter a traffic light where all the cars don't make it through, unless there's construction. This is probably because train transport capacity is prodigious, and driving is expensive.
    - shiroiuma 3y ago
      That's exactly it. Almost no one actually drives anywhere: most of the cars are taxis, and most of the rest of the vehicles are commercial (e.g. cargo trucks). When most of the people outside are taking a train, walking, or riding a bicycle, there aren't too many cars on the roads and consequently there isn't much traffic. The busiest places I see are near logistics centers, with lots of truck traffic coming and going. Also, driving isn't expensive in Tokyo at all, it's actually free except on the toll highways. What's expensive is parking: with few places to park, and it being expensive to rent a parking space in your apartment, it's not that affordable or practical to drive. People also aren't allowed to own cars unless they have a place to park them, so we don't have the problem of car owners fighting over scarce street parking like many other cities.
- _whiteCaps_ 3y ago
  I love that Vancouver doesn't have a freeway through the city - but they've also got a relatively good transit system. IIRC it's the equivalent of 26 lanes for cars.
avisser 3y ago
I-81 through Syracuse NY is being torn down. There is already a bypass, I-481 that loops around the city to the East to connect with I-90. Very similar story - the highway divides Syracuse University from the poor Black neighborhoods. It's a scar through the middle of town. I'm very excited to see how the city heals around it.
- coldpie 3y ago
  Congrats, that's huge!
- yawgmoth 3y ago
  I-375, along the northeast of downtown Detroit, MI, is being replaced with a boulevard.
jnwatson 3y ago
Houston is about to remove the Pierce Elevated, a section of I-45 that separates Downtown from midtown. This is a very big deal.
brabel 3y ago
This article[1] shows multiple cities that have done that, many in the USA. It seems that in every single case, it was always a very good thing for the city. [1] https://www.archdaily.com/800155/6-cities-that-have-transformed-their-highways-into-urban-parks https://www.archdaily.com/800155/6-cities-that-have-transfor...
earthling8118 3y ago
I find it interesting to see the words "twin cities" referred to here as if we all know what that is. I can see that this is referring to Minneapolis as per the link, but without that we would be left to guess. Here's a list of many twin cities https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_cities https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_cities
- fennecbutt 3y ago
  Tbf I thought it was common knowledge. My home town's sister city is Mishima; I've been there.

hobs 3y ago

I live in the twin cities and I had no idea that was even on anyone's mind, I love the idea.

coldpie 3y ago
Please, please (please) contact everyone you can think of to support the idea. MnDOT has contact info on the Rethinking I-94 page[1], tell your city council rep, your county commissioner, your mayor, your state legislators, the governor. Tell your friends and neighbors. It's so easy to just fall back and do the same thing we've always done; making a change is really hard and we need to show that there is support for it. [1] https://talk.dot.state.mn.us/rethinking-i94 https://talk.dot.state.mn.us/rethinking-i94 The official term for the proposal to remove the freeway is "at-grade alternatives".
- hobs 3y ago
  I will do this thing you say.

seanmcdirmid 3y ago

> There is a serious proposal to remove the interstate entirely and replace it with a street. I'm afraid that this would wind up like Vancouver, which lacks freeways through the city and has pretty bad traffic as a result. Better maybe to tunnel it under if possible? That works well for Seattle, although we still have I5 to contend with that divides the downtown from Capitol Hill (there is talk of lidding the entire freeway through downtown).

stefan_ 3y ago
All cities will forever have "bad traffic". Car transport capacity is plain abysmal.
- mitthrowaway2 3y ago
  Tokyo's traffic is pretty reasonable, actually. It's quite surprising. I rarely encounter a traffic light where all the cars don't make it through, unless there's construction. This is probably because train transport capacity is prodigious, and driving is expensive.
  - shiroiuma 3y ago
    That's exactly it. Almost no one actually drives anywhere: most of the cars are taxis, and most of the rest of the vehicles are commercial (e.g. cargo trucks). When most of the people outside are taking a train, walking, or riding a bicycle, there aren't too many cars on the roads and consequently there isn't much traffic. The busiest places I see are near logistics centers, with lots of truck traffic coming and going. Also, driving isn't expensive in Tokyo at all, it's actually free except on the toll highways. What's expensive is parking: with few places to park, and it being expensive to rent a parking space in your apartment, it's not that affordable or practical to drive. People also aren't allowed to own cars unless they have a place to park them, so we don't have the problem of car owners fighting over scarce street parking like many other cities.
_whiteCaps_ 3y ago
I love that Vancouver doesn't have a freeway through the city - but they've also got a relatively good transit system. IIRC it's the equivalent of 26 lanes for cars.

avisser 3y ago

I-81 through Syracuse NY is being torn down. There is already a bypass, I-481 that loops around the city to the East to connect with I-90. Very similar story - the highway divides Syracuse University from the poor Black neighborhoods. It's a scar through the middle of town. I'm very excited to see how the city heals around it.

coldpie 3y ago
Congrats, that's huge!
yawgmoth 3y ago
I-375, along the northeast of downtown Detroit, MI, is being replaced with a boulevard.

jnwatson 3y ago

Houston is about to remove the Pierce Elevated, a section of I-45 that separates Downtown from midtown. This is a very big deal.

brabel 3y ago

This article[1] shows multiple cities that have done that, many in the USA. It seems that in every single case, it was always a very good thing for the city. [1] https://www.archdaily.com/800155/6-cities-that-have-transformed-their-highways-into-urban-parks https://www.archdaily.com/800155/6-cities-that-have-transfor...

earthling8118 3y ago

I find it interesting to see the words "twin cities" referred to here as if we all know what that is. I can see that this is referring to Minneapolis as per the link, but without that we would be left to guess. Here's a list of many twin cities https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_cities https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_cities

fennecbutt 3y ago
Tbf I thought it was common knowledge. My home town's sister city is Mishima; I've been there.