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Approved-By:  John Massengale <[log in to unmask]>
Message-ID:  <[log in to unmask]>
Date:         Thu, 6 Jul 2000 10:57:26 -0400
Reply-To: Sierra Club Forum on Transportation Issues              <[log in to unmask]>
Sender: Sierra Club Forum on Transportation Issues              <[log in to unmask]>
From: John Massengale <[log in to unmask]>
Subject:      Atlanta Constitution: Wendell Cox report is blueprint for razing
              Atlanta region
To: [log in to unmask]


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> Road Report is Blueprint for Razing Atlanta Region
> "In ways that he never intended, Wendell Cox has done metro Atlanta an
> enormous service..."

http://www.accessatlanta.com/partners/ajc/epaper/editions/today/opinion_9346
e1cab35362d60057.html

OPINION TODAY =95 July  6, 2000

AccessAtlanta.com=20


Constitution: Road report is blueprint for razing Atlanta region
Staff
Thursday, July 6, 2000

In ways that he never intended, Wendell Cox has done metro Atlanta an
enormous service.=20

A self-proclaimed (though untrained) transportation expert who makes his
living writing propaganda for pro-road causes, Cox recently wrote a report
for the Georgia Public Policy Foundation that purports to offer a
"common-sense" solution to metro Atlanta's transportation problems.

His report is flawed in many respects, but it's a valuable document for one
reason: It is the first time anyone has tried to spell out just what it
would take to accommodate 1.5 million more residents, all driving as much as
or more than today's residents. Cox calls it a "New Vision," but it's more
like a regressive hallucination.

Cox believes it would be realistic to create a grid of arterial roads six to
eight lanes wide, no more than one mile apart, throughout metro Atlanta. He
also says there should be another grid of freeways crisscrossing the region,
advocating construction of the Outer Perimeter and at least one, maybe two
additional east-west freeways between it and I-285.

He calls for building freeways underground in double-decked tunnels and
double-decking other above-ground freeways. He advocates adding another deck
exclusively for trucks. Reversible lanes should be added to existing roads.

In essence, Cox is suggesting that between now and 2025, we should raze
Atlanta as we know it and replace it with Los Angeles --- on steroids.
Indeed, Cox invoked Los Angeles as a model: "Nobody gets caught in traffic
in Los Angeles if they know what they're doing," he said.

Cox was trying to make the point that the grid of broadways and freeways
allows Angelenos to chose alternative routes, which is true. Unfortunately,
the statement that smart drivers never get stuck in traffic is utterly
false, as millions of Angelenos can attest. The larger lesson from Los
Angeles is this: Even with the best road network in the country, congestion
is all but unavoidable when people are forced to use that system to excess.

Cox doesn't try to guess how much his vision would cost, but he acknowledges
that it is likely to be more than the $36 billion in the 25-year plan
prepared by the Atlanta Regional Commission, a figure that already
represents every known source of transportation revenue and then some.
Suffice it to say, retrofitting a built-up metropolitan area with an Los
Angeles-style highway system will cost exponentially more, not just in
asphalt, concrete, tunnel boring, deck-building and land, but in the
thousands of likely lawsuits by people who care about Atlanta's
neighborhoods, cities and environment. Add the costs of disruption to
existing traffic during this all-pervasive construction and you're talking
economic calamity.=20

Even if we had the money, would we really want to pay the aesthetic,
environmental, social and other costs? Will quality of life be improved when
we are all within earshot of a roaring freeway? Will we still love a metro
Atlanta carved into so many rat mazes, living in neighborhoods cowering
beneath behemoth, multidecked freeways?

Cox's assumption that free-flowing traffic is the only characteristic of a
city worth caring about is pathological. We are where we are today --- with
mounting congestion and smog problems --- precisely because we have
attempted to design our cities exclusively to accommodate the movement of
cars.=20

Someone once defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again
and expecting a different outcome. Our traffic is grating, but surely it
hasn't driven us crazy enough to pave over the region.

=A9 2000 Cox Interactive Media <http://www.cimedia.com>



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<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Atlanta Constitution: Wendell Cox report is blueprint for razing Atla=
nta region</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
&gt; Road Report is Blueprint for Razing Atlanta Region<BR>
&gt; &quot;In ways that he never intended, Wendell Cox has done metro Atlant=
a an<BR>
&gt; enormous service...&quot;<BR>
<BR>
<FONT COLOR=3D"#0000FF"><U>http://www.accessatlanta.com/partners/ajc/epaper/=
editions/today/opinion_9346e1cab35362d60057.html<BR>
</U></FONT><FONT SIZE=3D"1"><BR>
</FONT><FONT SIZE=3D"2"><B>OPINION</B></FONT><B> TODAY =95 July &nbsp;6, 200=
0 <BR>
</B><FONT SIZE=3D"2"><BR>
</FONT><FONT COLOR=3D"#0000CC"><FONT SIZE=3D"1"><B>AccessAtlanta.com</B></FO=
NT></FONT><FONT SIZE=3D"2"> <BR>
<BR>
</FONT><BR>
<H2>Constitution: Road report is blueprint for razing Atlanta region<BR>
</H2><FONT SIZE=3D"1">Staff<BR>
</FONT>Thursday, July 6, 2000<BR>
<BR>
In ways that he never intended, Wendell Cox has done metro Atlanta an enormo=
us service. <BR>
<BR>
A self-proclaimed (though untrained) transportation expert who makes his liv=
ing writing propaganda for pro-road causes, Cox recently wrote a report for=20=
the Georgia Public Policy Foundation that purports to offer a &quot;common-s=
ense&quot; solution to metro Atlanta's transportation problems. <BR>
<BR>
His report is flawed in many respects, but it's a valuable document for one=20=
reason: It is the first time anyone has tried to spell out just what it woul=
d take to accommodate 1.5 million more residents, all driving as much as or=20=
more than today's residents. Cox calls it a &quot;New Vision,&quot; but it's=
 more like a regressive hallucination. <BR>
<BR>
Cox believes it would be realistic to create a grid of arterial roads six to=
 eight lanes wide, no more than one mile apart, throughout metro Atlanta. He=
 also says there should be another grid of freeways crisscrossing the region=
, advocating construction of the Outer Perimeter and at least one, maybe two=
 additional east-west freeways between it and I-285. <BR>
<BR>
He calls for building freeways underground in double-decked tunnels and doub=
le-decking other above-ground freeways. He advocates adding another deck exc=
lusively for trucks. Reversible lanes should be added to existing roads. <BR=
>
<BR>
In essence, Cox is suggesting that between now and 2025, we should raze Atla=
nta as we know it and replace it with Los Angeles --- on steroids. Indeed, C=
ox invoked Los Angeles as a model: &quot;Nobody gets caught in traffic in Lo=
s Angeles if they know what they're doing,&quot; he said. <BR>
<BR>
Cox was trying to make the point that the grid of broadways and freeways all=
ows Angelenos to chose alternative routes, which is true. Unfortunately, the=
 statement that smart drivers never get stuck in traffic is utterly false, a=
s millions of Angelenos can attest. The larger lesson from Los Angeles is th=
is: Even with the best road network in the country, congestion is all but un=
avoidable when people are forced to use that system to excess. <BR>
<BR>
Cox doesn't try to guess how much his vision would cost, but he acknowledges=
 that it is likely to be more than the $36 billion in the 25-year plan prepa=
red by the Atlanta Regional Commission, a figure that already represents eve=
ry known source of transportation revenue and then some. Suffice it to say,=20=
retrofitting a built-up metropolitan area with an Los Angeles-style highway=20=
system will cost exponentially more, not just in asphalt, concrete, tunnel b=
oring, deck-building and land, but in the thousands of likely lawsuits by pe=
ople who care about Atlanta's neighborhoods, cities and environment. Add the=
 costs of disruption to existing traffic during this all-pervasive construct=
ion and you're talking economic calamity. <BR>
<BR>
Even if we had the money, would we really want to pay the aesthetic, environ=
mental, social and other costs? Will quality of life be improved when we are=
 all within earshot of a roaring freeway? Will we still love a metro Atlanta=
 carved into so many rat mazes, living in neighborhoods cowering beneath beh=
emoth, multidecked freeways? <BR>
<BR>
Cox's assumption that free-flowing traffic is the only characteristic of a c=
ity worth caring about is pathological. We are where we are today --- with m=
ounting congestion and smog problems --- precisely because we have attempted=
 to design our cities exclusively to accommodate the movement of cars. <BR>
<BR>
Someone once defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again an=
d expecting a different outcome. Our traffic is grating, but surely it hasn'=
t driven us crazy enough to pave over the region. <BR>
<BR>
<FONT SIZE=3D"1">=A9 2000 Cox Interactive Media &lt;<FONT COLOR=3D"#0000FF">=
<U>http://www.cimedia.com</U></FONT>&gt; <BR>
</FONT><BR>
</BODY>
</HTML>


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