Pretty cool article in today's Free Press about freeway construction in Detroit...
Free Press Flashback: The life cycle of Detroit's freeways
https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...n/70039370007/Freeways cutting through American cities are an endangered species these days, as the movement picks up steam to remove urban highways and replace them with people-friendly features.
Even in Detroit, Interstate 375 downtown appears doomed, likely to be filled in and replaced by a grade-level boulevard.
It is difficult to imagine the Motor City without freeways: Two million residents crowding on streetcars and buses; city officials constantly tweaking streets to alleviate traffic jams. Driving from Dearborn to Grosse Pointe? Before the ditches, motorists had no alternative but to spend an hour or more in crosstown traffic.You might remember those days — if you’re pushing 90. In 1942, the first freeway, tiny Davison, opened in the hope it would relieve traffic congestion in central Detroit.
The big push for freeways came after World War II. Rejecting streetcars and plans for subways, officials decided that making Detroit hospitable for automobiles would be, not surprisingly, a top priority. In 1944, a slick city publication told residents: “Of all the various projects now under consideration, perhaps none is of greater importance to Detroiters than the proposed system of expressways, wider and straighter streets, and the elimination of traffic bottlenecks.”
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