In the second of the CMRT webinars, guest speakers discuss the ways highway expansions undermine multi-modal forms of transportation.
What is the Coalition for More Responsible Transportation?
CMRT is a coalition that shares a vision of bettering transportation in Wisconsin through making it efficient, convenient and clean for all members of our state. CMRT believes that transportation should improve our quality of life and contribute to making Wisconsinites both healthier and happier.
Webinar Summary:
Featured speakers Beth Osborne from Transportation for America, environmental lawyer Dennis Grzezinski, Peter Skopec of the Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group, and Eau Claire city council member Jeremy Gragert discussed the negative impacts of highway expansions- focusing on things like increased emissions and the effects that they have disadvantaged communities. Speakers also talked about traffic myths, why traffic congestion is growing, potential solutions to transportation issues, and the legal history of the fight for better transportation.
Key takeaways:
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Adding capacity and expanding freeways is not helping to reduce roadway congestion.
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Ultimately, expanding freeways in relation to population size just causes more delays!
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People are driving more than they used to due to increased development- this results in more congestion.
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Roadway safety should be prioritized instead of speed of travel.
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We should be investing the money we are spending on roadway transit in other ways.
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IE: maintaining roads instead of building new ones and increasing access on roads for people to reach jobs and services.
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Highway systems can impact landscapes and create barriers for people who don’t have their own cars.
Video Link: https://www.facebook.com/CMRTWI/videos/284591439616176/?v=284591439616176
Written by Mackenzie Christman, Organizing Project Aide with the Sierra Club Wisconsin Chapter. Thumbnail photo courtesy of Open Grid Scheduler.