Free Republic

A public interest advocacy group has identified the country’s “most wasteful and pointless” transportation projects, which are costing taxpayers $25 billion. The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) cites among “the biggest boondoggles” a $2.2 billion widening of Interstate 81 in Virginia, a $7 billion interstate project in Houston and a $802 million “Connecting Miami” redesign of city highways. According to PIRG, widening highways to reduce gridlock fails for several reasons. Multiple studies show that more road space over time leads to further congestion because of a phenomenon called “induced demand.” “We’re stuck in a car-centric rut in the United...

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Maybe one day they'll finish the renovation project on the Bayonne Bridge. Until then, we're going to have to keep enduring these total closures of the span, including on the weekends, which is a mind-numbingly bad time to shutter the bridge. Not that the Port Authority sees it that way, no matter how much we bang on their cage. We're supposed to have some nice weather this weekend. Mid-70s. Sunny. Lots of folks are going to be out driving. A lot of them are going to be going to New Jersey, either to shop, visit friends...

The blizzard of '93 brought more snow than most Atlanta natives had ever seen or will see. The floods of 2009 brought an unexpected rush of water that submerged interstates. The winter storm of 2011 took an entire week away from the city. But the Snow Jam of 2014 might be the single craziest weather day in Atlanta in a generation. 1-to-3 inches of snow, mixed in with an afternoon drive that still hasn't ended has brought Atlanta to its knees again. “There are certain things we don’t have control over and one of those is the weather. This came...

Slippery, snowy roads left students stranded in school late Tuesday night as parents waded through paralyzing traffic and buses struggled to arrive, hours after school was dismissed early. Some schools and their employees braced for the possibility that students might have to sleep at school overnight if no one could reach them on slick roads. “We definitely might be pulling an all-nighter here,” said Thomas Algarin, spokesman for Marietta City Schools. “We have been trying to transport students all afternoon, into evening and up to about 30 minutes ago, Cobb school spokesman Jay Dillon said in an e-mail send to...

You’ve probably been worrying yourself sick about me, wondering if I’ve survived the nightmare, Weekend-style apocalypse known as Carmageddon here in L.A. Well, let me hasten to assure you that I’m absolutely fine. Everything is fine. So, I guess we’re both fine, then. It’s great to be fine, Dmitri. And fine I am. Sitting here in my palatial pad in Echo Park, where we plaster icons of Che Guevara (after whom my dad, the sainted “Che” Kahane, named himself) all over the taco stands on Sunset to show our solidarity with la Revolución, I was entirely unaffected by the colossal...

Carmageddon ended 16-17 hours ahead of schedule, said the mayor at a Sunday morning news conference.

Here you go, watch it live. CARMAGEDDON CAM

LOS ANGELES — Traffic in the Los Angeles area was flowing freely Saturday morning following the shutdown of a 10-mile stretch of one of the busiest U.S. freeways. But officials warned the real test was likely to begin around midday, after the country's second-largest city fully awakened.

Thousands of doctors and nurses will bunk at hospitals, an emergency operation center will be set up and Southern California residents are being urged to stay home and stock up on food. One major airline offered $4 seats to help people avoid the looming mess, selling out of tickets in three hours. The crisis? A 10-mile stretch of Interstate 405 — a vital artery that links population centers north and south of the Santa Monica Mountains — is shutting down for 53 hours this weekend. The closure, a necessary part of a major highway reconstruction project, is being dubbed "Carmageddon,"...