Quote:
Originally Posted by jowens
Really like the idea of dismantling the I-10 overpass downtown. Obviously this is great for those neighborhoods.
Sad to hear the news about Avondale.
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I'm sorry, but dismantling the I-10 might sound like a great urban planning idea, but from an engineering aspect that is one of stupidest thing this city could do.
1. The Feds probably wouldn't approve it to begin with.
2. The State is more than likely not going to pay to tear this down, reconstruct I-610 and then redo the Pontchartrain Expwy.
3. You will have to accomodate and extra 2-4 lanes between Gentilly and Lakeview. I can see the Lakeview NIMBYism starting as I type. Also, widening I-610 would require dismantling the entire highway from Franklin to Bayou St. John.
4. You would have to add 2-4 lanes between the 17th street canal and the Superdome. That also involves moving railroad tracks and rebuilding the Carrollton interchange.
5. Once the CBD does get fully revitalized traffic would be a disaster. It already is when you consider the daily back ups at the Claiborne flyover ramp and the line of 18-wheelers enroute to and from the port between 8am-noon daily. Let's not even think about event weekends.
Every city that has torn down a freeway to make a surface street or parkway removed a freeway that already served as a spur into the core or had a decent bypass that was affected by removing the other freeway. Also, the cost to tear it down, rebuild Claiborne, and modify existing highways to compensate will cost way more than just rebuilding the I-10 when it's said and done.
New Orleans does not need to do this.
Also, to those who think tearing it down will lead to revitalization... what's the problem with all the other wide neutral ground, landscaped streets around here? There are plenty of them. Just look at S. Claiborne. The smartest thing that can be done is to just rebuild the highway. The city and surrounding areas are what they are today because of the decisions made 50 years ago. We can't undo the mistakes of the past. The best thing we can do is make a decision that will benefit the entire area and not just what we think will help 2 or 3 neighborhoods.