Free Republic

After years of construction, with traffic-cone obstacle courses, tire-bursting potholes and white-knuckle steering along ever-shifting lanes, it might stand that the coming tolls for the rebuilt Interstate 4 would also bring the same level of dread. But drivers might be in for a pleasant surprise. “We actually don’t know yet how much the tolls are going to be,” said Jared Perdue, the state’s transportation secretary for Central Florida. “There are a lot of unknowns and a lot of assumptions.” But while final toll calculations are still underway, Perdue’s agency estimated recently that the I-4 toll lanes will now not be...

Several friends and fans contacted me urgently this week: "TxDOT's going to bulldoze the Chronicle! You're in danger!" As part of its current "virtual public meeting" at a computer near you, the Texas Department of Transportation released schematics – big long aerial views of the corridor – for its three alternatives, one of which it has abandoned already, for rebuilding I-35 through Central Austin: what the agency calls the Capital Express Central project. And sure enough, there we are, under layers of proposed new concrete and asphalt at the address formerly known as 4000 N. I-35, where we've been since...

Long before she was tall enough to sit behind a steering wheel, Paula Nelson-Blattner was experiencing the best and the worst of the Howard Frankland Bridge. “As a kid, I was always nervously asking my parents, ‘Did you check your gas?’” said Nelson-Blattner, 52, who got the creeps crossing the concrete span, perched as it is atop golf-tee shaped pillars as far as 58 feet above the waters of Old Tampa Bay. “Of course, once you’re close enough to read the warnings, not a gas station is in sight and it’s far too late to turn back.” The “check your...

UPDATE Aug. 17, 9:44 p.m. More mandatory evacuations have been ordered Tuesday evening for the following areas: All areas between Mormon Emigrant Trail and Highway 88; The intersection of Perry Creek and Hawk Haven; The east side of Fairplay Road from Perry Creek extending south to Cedarville Road, including Slug Gulch, Omo Ranch, and all roads off of Slug Gulch and Omo Ranch; All roads off of Omo Ranch from Cedarville Road to Highway 88 The south side of Highway 50 north of Sly Park extending west to Snows Road. The north side of Highway 50 from Larsen Drive to...

One of two brothers accused of killing a Chicago police officer was on the street despite being charged in a hit-and-run months earlier while on probation, according to a report. Emonte Morgan, 21, whom prosecutors say admitted fatally shooting Officer Ella French, 29, during a Saturday traffic stop, allegedly slammed into a man in a crosswalk on April 9 — while he was already on probation for a 2019 robbery, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. Morgan could have been sent back to jail at a court hearing set for Tuesday over the incident — some three days after he and his...

With commercial traffic returning to pre-pandemic levels, the Pennsylvania Turnpike is increasing its spending on road improvements by nearly $200 million for the fiscal year that begins June 1. The turnpike commission Tuesday approved the capital spending increase to $660 million for the new year along with passing an operating budget of $417.3 million, about 2% lower than the current spending plan. Last year, the agency cut its capital spending from $606 million to $468 million as a result of losing more than $250 million in tolls due to reduced travel during the pandemic. Turnpike CEO Mark Compton said in...

Lewiston, NY Aug 6, 2021, approx. 8:30 pm: This YouTube Link shows an approximately 3.7 mile traffic jam of mostly waiting to cross an International bridge from Lewiston New York to Queeston, Ontario (see map below where this video was taken. There was a report from Buffalo NY of a similar traffic jam of trucks waiting to cross the Peace Bridge into Fort Erie, ON at the same time.Local news say the Canadian union wants better protection for staff and other things... So to make their point they are asking each person every question in the manual.Late word that the...

Traffic congestion in Beijing has declined by 30 percent over the past week, and is falling in other parts of the country as well, as the spread of a new coronavirus variant gains traction, threatening the outlook for oil demand, Bloomberg reports.There have been multiple outbreaks across China, and the situation remains uncertain, Vice-premier Sun Chunlan said earlier this week, as quoted by state news agency Xinhua.As with the previous outbreak, which China stifled with a complete lockdown, the rise in infections is affecting movement and, consequently, fuel use.“For those provinces and regions with severe cases, such as Jiangsu, we...

Starting next week, billboards, social media, television and print media will carry messages urging thousands of Valley motorists, including those in the West Valley, to prepare for four years of disruptions in their driving routines. It’s not exactly Armageddon that the Arizona Department of Transportation will be heralding, but it certainly won’t be a walk in the park either, especially for car and truck traffic on I-10. West Valley motorists who need to get to the other side of the county or Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport can expect significant increases in traffic as motorists try to evade the inevitable...

San Francisco is considering a congestion pricing plan that would charge motorists for entering the busy downtown core -- but only if they make more than $46,000 per year. The San Francisco County Transportation Authority is leading the city’s study on the proposal to charge a fee to any drivers who enter the downtown zone, details of which were reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. London has used a similar congestion charge scheme for nearly a decade, but it does not include an income threshold. New York City is currently considering a daily charge of $14 for motorists who enter...

SAN DIEGO — Across the nation some cities are ripping up aging highways to make room for open spaces that connect — rather than divide — neighborhoods. In San Diego some advocates are looking to the sky for a similar solution to reunite neighborhoods that were split by interstate highways. San Diego Commons, a nonprofit group led by local architects and urban planners, is proposing that the city build bridge decks, often called freeway lids, above Interstate 5 to reconnect several central San Diego neighborhoods that years ago were shorn apart when the interstates were built. The nonprofit is proposing...

The Idaho Transportation Department is gearing up to begin improvements to the “Flying Y” interchange system that connects Interstates 86 and 15 located on the Pocatello-Chubbuck border. ITD is currently in the design phase of the project, which will involve roadway, ramp and bridge upgrades at the junction of Interstate 86 and Interstate 15, and building a new separated pedestrian and bicycle path. Construction on the project is slated to begin in mid-2022 and conclude in 2025, ITD says. “This project aims to improve safety, mobility and economic opportunity by upgrading the roadway to current engineering standards, replacing the aging...

Jesus Torres can see a lot from his perch in the cab of a tanker truck. Cars with blown tires on the side of the pothole-scarred roads. Overturned tankers on exit ramps curved too sharply for large modern trucks to handle. And more often than not, red tail lights snaking into the distance. “They need to add more lanes to all the highways,” he said on a recent morning on Interstate 270 just after leaving the Phillips 66 terminal in Commerce City. Far too often, Torres said, accidents on this highway through Colorado’s industrial center will cause long delays that...

I hate waiting at traffic lights. There's a solution: traffic circles, or roundabouts. Traffic circles terrified me when I first confronted them in Europe. A movie, National Lampoon?s European Vacation, captured my experience when it portrayed Chevy Chase driving in London, unable to exit a rotary all day. Besides being hard to navigate, I also assumed roundabouts cause problems, but a Freakanomics podcast woke me to their advantages. Roundabouts are a reason Britain?s rate of traffic deaths is less than half the U.S.'s. We've converted almost all of our traffic lights to roundabouts because we save lives,? says the mayor...

I live in Vegas and I've been watching a live traffic cam showing the traffic near Primm, NV , which is at the NV/CA state line on I-15. It's been going on since 10:00AM this morning, and it's been 5mph, bumper to bumper all day and is continuing into the night. I've never seen anything like it. It's mostly Californians returning home after spending the holiday weekend here. Here's the website. Type "Primm" in the "find" box and then click the blue box in the upper right corner to expand the picture. Drive time from Vegas to L.A. is normally...

The entire $1.7 billion Carolina Crossroads project is broken down into five phases. The plan is to provide a safer, more modern interchange design for the state’s top interstate “pinch point,” commonly known as “Malfunction Junction” in the Midlands of South Carolina. More than 134,000 vehicles including commuters, freight carriers and other travelers pass through this area on a daily basis. Phase I of the Carolina Crossroads project will center on the reconfiguration of the Colonial Life Boulevard interchange on I-126. Some improvements will be made to improve traffic flow along I-26 heading in the direction U.S. 378. This project...

The Virginia Department of Transportation is set to begin construction this spring for variable speed limits on Interstate 95 northbound between Caroline and Spotsylvania counties. Crashes have occurred when northbound vehicles traveling at speed unexpectedly encounter stopped or slowing traffic flow due to congestion or lane closures for incidents and highway work zones, VDOT said. New signs displaying variable speed limits between 35 mph and 65-70 mph will be paired with dynamic message boards along I-95 north between the 115 and 130 mile markers. "Drivers will adjust their speed based on real-time information about delays and conditions on the road...

BOCA RATON, Fla. — Drivers on Interstate 95 in Palm Beach County will have an easier and faster way to get around. Express lanes are being built in the southern part of the county, but that means years of construction are ahead. The Florida Department of Transportation is investing $1 billion in building express lanes from Broward County to Delray Beach. The tolled lanes would connect with the current lanes already built in Miami. "Driving on 95 right now, it is a zoo," said Christopher Tapia when asked how he'd describe driving on I-95. The express lanes project started in...

The I 40 M Bridge going into AR from TN is out of commission, it spans the Mississippi River, NO Trucks, Cars, NO Boat traffic. Won't take long food, oil, and other necessities run low or out. https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fthememphian.blob.core.windows.net%2Fsized%2F54486_960&f=1&nofb=1 Because Blue City Controlled Memphis neglected a known crack for years till a Novice could see the crack in the pillar holding up the bridge. Major Artery for traffic. Traffic backed up miles. With the amount of traffic across it, is by God's grace it Didn't collapse. 50 year old bridge audio into 911

The Florida Department of Transportation said Thursday that repairs on the Pensacola Bay Bridge are still on track to be completed by the week of May 31. As FDOT contractors install and repair the final five trophy pieces on the Pensacola Bay Bridge, considerable efforts have shifted to the construction and completion of the remaining bridge decks on the structure. Deck constructions consists of several key phases including: Placement of concrete beams. During this process, precast beams are transported to the bridge site, and erected onto the abutments and piers. Installation of stay-in-place forms and rebar (reinforced steel). The stay-in-place...