BLOCKS of East Houston About to be DEMOLISHED

[@noahg4369]

if highway expansions worked, LA and Houston would have the best traffic in the world

[@ScottDaileyYOUTUBE]

LMAO

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

Tourists from Sweden most certainly aren't going to want to look at the mile wide freeways in Houston that are one hundred lanes wide or the city's bus routes. Wait! Maybe they will!!

[@dark12ain]

It's not gonna only be freeway they are planning on building a greenery over that freeway so lots of power space for walking and stuff too

[@geoff_cline]

The average commute in Houston is 30 minutes and it’s >90 in London and Tokyo, so I mean yeah it’s working.

[@usernameryan5982]

@@geoff_cline Average commute time in Tokyo is 59 minutes with about half of that dedicated to walking which is partially why they don't have chronic obesity and diabetes like the average Houstonian. In London, it's about 38 minutes. All without the fear of of a maniac driving 100+mph with road rage near you or looking at a the ugliest city on earth due to over a third of it dedicated to parking. In Houston, you can't go anywhere without a car meaning your kids are a slave to your willingness to get in the car and drive them to and from places, the average 7 year old in Tokyo has more freedom and independence than the average 15 year old in America. Bulldozing a third of Tokyo to put in 10 lane highways isn't going to increase anyone's quality of life.

[@atjared]

Got to love how the solution to connecting midtown to downtown is to make the east end even more disconnected from downtown. Really brilliant planning there.

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

LOL. Exactly. Understand, in Houston, they built all those below grade freeways to work as drains for floods during hurricanes and tropical storms.

[@HotWheelsBurban]

Maybe not intentionally...but as a native of the Houston area, who's lived through a LOT of flooding, I can tell you that's what they'll be. And every time we have a flood event, people get stranded in the below grade freeways. Cars and trucks flood, get stuck, make pollution that gets in the rainwater and ends up in the drainage system which ends up in the bayous and Gulf, and most importantly, people die in those flooded highways.

[@vanhagar3000]

I also find it funny that part of the way to connect midtown to downtown is to keep part of the structure, but put a park on it. "Hey guys, we're gonna keep this enormous eyesore and yeah, sure when you try to walk underneath it, it'll still be dark and creepy, but now there's a park on top and fewer 'vroom' sounds, so it's like a seamless transition!"

[@JeanEDeaux]

Did you even pay attention? They are actually going to cover the entire highway with a “park” or at least some semblance of usable space/connectivity. 🤦‍♂️

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@HotWheelsBurbanWill the cap not address this as well? Or should we totally disregard it? 🙄

[@1000rogueleader]

Contrary to what a lot of people are saying here, this project will NOT add any additional freeway lanes. Its simply moving existing lanes to another location.

[@SnowmanTF2]

Maybe that is true in some areas, but there are areas it adds several lanes.

[@tcs8792]

It will also allow HCTRA to add toll lanes to collect more revenue. Use 290 and I-10 as the examples. Widening with large toll lanes in the inner sides.

[@georgerogers1166]

Save the Pierce Elevated.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Same thing¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@georgerogers1166 Hell no. Even if they didn’t make any other changes, the Pierce elevated NEEDS TO GO NOW. It physically divides downtown from the growing and developing midtown and that’s just terrible urban planning and development. It disrupts the fabric of the city in a big negative way. THE PIERCE ELEVATED NEEDS TO GEAUX NOW. 💯💯💯‼️

[@itoldyouso2137]

So that's why they tore that down??????!!!!! I was like dang, they just built those lofts a few years back

[@misternguyenstudio2658]

Don't worry, the loft owners probably receive some good money from the city :D

[@emanuelandrewsiii4160]

Word is that those developers were aware of this project and bet that they would get a great return. Damn the fact that they'd have to lie to tenants.

[@JoseFloresEC]

$7 billion for such project? ...and some people critivize the proposed $12 billion 218 mile Brightline West corridor

[@LPenn0505]

This is what happens when people aren’t given other options to driving. Don’t take away cars, but don’t force everyone to drive either. Texas doesn’t understand this. Only $12B for an intercity train? That sounds like a low bid. You know projects almost always go over budget.

[@erichenao6537]

Man that sucks about the brewery as they just got award for best for the year in Texas for 2022.

[@marcusstrohm6490]

Actually talked to them about that the last time I was there, already have a new, larger space lined up a bit north and east on Navigation. Glad they will still be around but losing that very cool location stinks.

[@jayangek3532]

8th wonder?

[@michaelreimer951]

​@@jayangek35328th Wonder is safe. True Anomaly brewery purchased land and is moving near OG Nina's. Will be an impressive spread by the sounds of it.

[@jordanl8603]

@@jayangek3532 True Anomoly

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@marcusstrohm6490💯💯

[@emmanuelpn91]

The reality of highway expansions is that traffic will not get any better. We should be investing heavy dollars into projects that restore the health of our bayous, building mass transit including commuter rail lines, and rehabilitation of our existing roads to make them safer for all uses. That's not to say that the benefits of reconnecting Central Houston neighborhoods are not important, but there are other less expensive options to connect our urban core.

[@USMC-Goforth]

Naw we don't want mass public transit we rather drive our selfs. Maybe the rich whites in downtown will like it

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

Good luck with arguing that point with all the young kids nowadays that have been graduated under a policy of Affirmative Action. In biology, the four kinds of tissue were formed to create transitions, streams, borders, boundaries, limits, and so on these necessary to form the even larger organs and, even further, the groups of organs that make up our immune system. Blood is a tissue!

[@PerfectlyFunctioningAI]

what in the world is stopping commuter rails from being built? its just a no brainer, so many cars taken out of already congested streets/highways. And to buy up and remove all those businesses with the same money you can really lay some miles of rail easy.

[@381delirius]

@@PerfectlyFunctioningAI a new bus rapid transit project would connect westchase and tidwell TC to downtown. BRT is as reliable and fast as light rail but without the heavy rail cost.

[@PerfectlyFunctioningAI]

@@381delirius your gunna need to explain this bus rapid transit, becauses if they share the same roads as regular traffic then what even is the point of them?

[@JelandoJohnson]

It’s a big money grab for politicians, construction companies, etc. It will not alleviate traffic. It will affect poor people the most, as projects like this have historically done.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Affect them in what way exactly?

[@jeannek4033]

Even if they paved the entire city, it still wouldn't be enough.

[@cjrstudios4100]

Thats what they'll end up doing lol

[@VulcanLogic]

They won't stop until every driveway is an onramp.

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@cjrstudios4100Sssshht. Almost there now.

[@VulcanLogic]

Adding more lanes comes with six problems that are never solved, and all of them increase traffic. 1. People who previously took alternate routes will use the freeway more (wayz and google streets have "avoid highways" features for people who hate crawling). 2. People who used other modes of travel will use the freeway (transit abandonment due to lack of investment, active pedestrian transit is too dangerous). 3. People who waited to travel at off peak times (i.e. 8 PM or later) will use the freeway more at peak times. 4. People who avoided additional trips at peak hours will take more spontaneous trips at peak hours (i.e. errands or shopping). 5. People will take the expanded freeway due to future economic development around this infrastructure (i.e. offramps to new malls, perhaps new stadiums or job centers) instead of transit oriented development. 6. The places people want to go (shopping centers, sporting events, downtown, major employment centers, airports) are located on bottlenecked lower capacity surface streets. It wouldn't matter if you had a 1000 lane highway, those exits will always back up. And the 7th problem is none of this development pattern is sustainable or affordable. Houston and Dallas are drowning in debt and instead of paying it down, the government passed a tax cut. Good luck with dirt roads and open sewers in the cities, because you'll never pay your way out without raising taxes, especially when you're trying to maintain 26 lane highways with population densities lower than Detroit TODAY. As someone from Detroit, spoiler alert, when the growth stops, you'll see the same effects. Might not end as bad, but there will be the bankruptcies.

[@illhaveawtrplz]

This is so sad. I was about to encourage any and all locals to fight this tooth and nail but it sounds like the plan is already moving ahead (@4:23). Houston is about to swallow a massive infrastructure liability that will only serve to destroy the wealth and livelihoods created in this revitalized neighborhood. Such a shame, but its honestly par for the course in US infrastructure engineering.

[@Nolan.Grimes]

You should still encourage any and all to fight. We might lose this one, but it sets foundations for fighting future projects

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

Allowing the government to spend lots of money is always stupid. Allowing them to spend much much more on order to make things far far worse is beyond retardedly challenging.

[@Followerofchrist2091]

Look, I’m not a federalist, and I don’t agree with public funding because typically public funded programs destroyed wealth and takes money from the tax payer and gets blown on stupid sh. But this is important because of the extreme level of traffic that Houston’s metropolitan area sees and how hard it is to get across the city. This will definitely speed up traffic and get the economy moving faster. Further more, the guy didn’t explain really that down towns I-45 corridor currently will be demolished and new green space is proposed

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

@@Nolan.Grimes Houston is now a communist city-state on the level of Chicago. Before our Union falls, it is first going to rot into communist city-states. Now there are numerous rotting nation-states like California, Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin, Pennsylvanis, and Georgia. The problem for the Houston area as a whole is the size of both Houston and Harris County which dominate the whole metro area. In contrast, Fort Worth and Tarrant County operate more like a wide open suburb of similar rotting Dallas. That is why DFW is a preferable area to move to than Houston!

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

According to what a gorgeous woman was telling me over coffee this morning, Houston and Harris County are the cherriest of Communist city-states second to only the rotting inner city core of Austin in all of Texas. San Antonio and Dallas - the birthplace for modern cop killing - come in a close third and forth place. Fort Worth is the place to be!. Why expect something of quality to happen?

[@stickynorth]

I had really thought the USA had moved past Robert Moses level clearance projects... Guess not! SMH! Damn, Houston! What are you doing???

[@PlayaPotna1984]

It's not just Houston, it's the whole damn state of Texas in general since the powers that run the state hate public transportation. It's all about wider freeways only and pandering to drivers only. Nothing wrong with the freedom of owning private transportation but I wish miles of rail transit was invested in long ago without the "ignorant" obstacles.

[@danielkelly2210]

It has moved past Robert Moses in some places, but Texas is still stuck in the 1960s. You get lots of Texans saying stuff like: “It may seem incredible to people who aren’t from here, but actually we NEED another six lanes added on every highway!”

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@PlayaPotna1984This is NOT about widening ANY freeways. It’s being widened because it’s being COMBINED with 45. Damn!!! That’s WHY the Pierce elevated will be able to be completely removed!! Where’d you think 45 was magically gonna go??

[@davidfoley726]

Everything but more light rail and long over due commuter/ regional rail lines. Houston just keeps shooting itself in the foot!

[@Dr.ZoidbergPhD]

My band and I have been playing warehouse live for a couple years now. Great venue, but we found out they will close in December. The thing a out the park is that there will be a ton of homeless people there as there are ALREADY a lot of homeless folk in that area

[@Myeternalperspective]

Let’s be real though that park will never come…expanding freeways don’t work..look at I-10? It’s still terrible. Unfortunately, many organizations in Houston that’s supposed to help the city get better actually support this boondoggle of a project…btw this project will take years to complete…this plan is a complete embarrassment to the city…stuff like this makes the city move backwards…This project just shows how leadership has absolutely failed Houston. It also shows how corrupt the city and state is. Also, this could be disastrous to EaDo. Who really wants to fight traffic and construction to go out at night or during the day? This project is not something a forward thinking city would do. However, I do agree with getting rid of the pierce elevated. It would be cool to have a hi line type park but we all know that won’t happen just like the proposed EaDo park. They even said it’s not a guarantee even if this horrible project gets completed…it’s projects like this that make me understand why so many people I know are leaving Houston.

[@gener2682]

I-10 works much better now than it did before reconstruction. Yes it is still congested but the traffic actually moves. TxDot didn't want to add any additional lanes to I-10 until County Judge Ed Emmett demanded that they do. Now TxDot does not want to add any lanes to i-45 so the bottlenecks will remain just relocated. Also, when a major fire accident happens on one freeway all of them will be closed with no route around. Great planning TxDot. And all this for 7 billion tax dollars with no real improvement to traffic. But we will have a couple places for parks to be built for additional money. Hmmmmm 10-12 Billion dollar parks????

[@EdwardM-t8p]

​@@gener2682 Don't count on the parks, but do count on the highway price tag to inflate to $20 billion!

[@JeanEDeaux]

It’s not about expanding any highways, it’s about combining them and removing the old to create new space and connectivity. You all don’t even understand what is happening here or the reasons for it. That’s the problem. 😂

[@Myeternalperspective]

@@JeanEDeaux People like you still don't realize that even though they are combining highways they're destroying a burgeoning part of the city for it. All that construction is going to hurt an inner city that the city so desperately wanted to revitalize. I can't wait to see the gridlock during the World Cup. Also, we all know those parks will never get built. If it it does it'll be pretty crappy lol. People like you still can't wrap your head around the fact that this is huge money grab for many organizations. That’s the problem. 😂

[@mariusfacktor3597]

They need to simply remove the urban freeways. Spending billions to expand them and cap them is money that could be better spent building mass transit. Boston spent billions covering an urban highway but in order to do this it stupidly diverted subway funds from trains to the highway. Now it is left with really old tracks and rolling stock. Imagine if Boston removed this urban freeway and built 3 more subway lines instead. This would have removed tons of traffic from downtown while enabling even more people to get around even faster. Spending billions of dollars to destroy hundreds of homes and businesses has no possible return on investment. It's just putting all the money in a pit and burning it. Except even burning the cash would still leave you with the hundreds of tax-paying businesses that were not destroyed.

[@tylerkochman1007]

Level entire neighborhoods for highways: ✅ Level ANYTHING to build fully grade-separated rapid transit: ❌❌❌

[@JeanEDeaux]

💯💯💯💯‼️

[@JeanEDeaux]

“Grade separated transit” is such an important term man. Whew. Too bad no one calling the actual shots was familiar with it.

[@jeee1074]

This is probably the worst idea to change the downtown freeway system. It will cause tons of confusion for drivers trying to figure out which freeway they are trying to go to. It will be a huge waste of money and screws up an up-and-coming neighborhood. The problem with the downtown Houston freeways are the choke points before and after downtown, not within downtown. If anything, a lot of connections to the freeway need to be removed to lessen the easy access to the highways at the choke points. I could go on and on for days, but my common sense solutions don't matter.

[@David-td5po]

What about the part about them putting it underground! FOOLISHNESS 😭

[@187chriss4]

Yes I hate that choke point in particular and it’s the fault of bad drivers.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Or…..you could be completely wrong. There are currently many highways that share a route with absolutely no issues. 45/69/288 will now share a route through downtown. Simple. Now the former 45 is free to be town down, creating new spaces and a connection between downtown and midtown. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Simple. 45 SHOULD be removed completely between I10/90 and 59/69 near the Toyota center or the end of 288. That would free up the most space. 45 would already have an existing reconnect with 45 North using a newly “expanded I10” north of downtown. Just look at a map. It would totally reconnect the entire downtown area with the western side of the city. That current part of 45 is just unnecessary.

[@jeee1074]

@JeanEDeaux Sounds like something the government or a contractor benefitting from this project would say.

[@JeanEDeaux]

@ Or just someone interested and invested in the betterment of Houston? 🤔

[@robertwbingo]

The TXDot plan is pure lunacy.

[@JeanEDeaux]

It makes total sense and creates new space and connectivity in the city. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@swamppass]

"Just one more lane" they say, absolutely refusing to invest into rail infrastructure. Metrorail has been around for 20 years at this point yet is still nothing more than a novelty to bus out-of-towners between downtown, NRG, and the museum district/TMC. Additional stations & expansions to the suburbs & exurbs could help alleviate highway congestion. Between the Gulf Freeway expansion, 59/610 expansion, this, and whatever other projects TXDOT comes up with in the future, freeways will continue to be an insatiable beast that perpetually need to be widened.

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

Houston is so far behind Dallas pertaining to light rail that the city has become a third world Bohemia in comparison.

[@Dirkadew]

Bro wtf gonna ride the metro rail. I’d rather sit in traffic in my truck 🤣😭

[@lumensauce3199]

@@WilliamJones-sf5pt The ridership in Dallas is considerably quite less than Houston's per rail mile. My brother who lives in Dallas brags it's there near him but never uses it, lol.

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

@@lumensauce3199 DART had to fulfill the obligations of the Suburbs first. Now the agency can tweak the system in order to increase ridership such as adding infill stations.

[@BartdeBoisblanc]

It does appear the Governor and TXDOT want to protect their investment in building and or keeping freeways no matter the cost.

[@dilliam1702]

This feels like a net-positive. Removing the Pierce Elevated will be huge for the city. For the first time in over half a century, downtown will no longer be an island. As for the i45 expansion, that definitely sucks and at a bare minimum, we should fund a cap. A park would be awesome, but enabling commercial and residential development on the cap would be even better.

[@tiffanyjames7150]

Downtown benefits and it is a nightmare to get anywhere outside of downtown. Ridiculous

[@briand3459]

This is a great summary for all those changes.

[@firemaster657]

Net negative unfortunately this will reduce the city as well as the states revenue and will be a huge tax burden for decades to come for repairs. Seriously it would have been more cost efficient for them to just burn the money in a bonfire, since at least then they wouldnt have to worry about the insane maintenance costs and also loss of revenue. Since it also isnt a toll road this project will never pay for itself, not that it needs to but its insane that we say that public transit needs to be self funding.

[@RobCortez0416]

Great video. I'm curious to see how the park idea plays out. If I were in a position of making decisions, I'd stipulate that the new lanes would have to include space for a rail track.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Excellent idea. Preferably in the median.

[@kckgirl78]

I haven’t worked downtown since 1997 and had no idea all of this was happening. I hope it all works out for the people and businesses affected. 🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽🤞🏽

[@barlosxantana]

Not a single thing about this makes sense to me. Jeez. Thanks for your videos, super interesting. Thank you

[@piglet7943]

The demo of the pierce elevated does

[@barlosxantana]

@@piglet7943 if you really believe that's the best use of funds for our city then go off, but it's simply not 💀

[@JeanEDeaux]

Just say you don’t understand what is happening and then maybe ask relevant questions.

[@barlosxantana]

@@JeanEDeaux pipe down pip squeak

[@JeanEDeaux]

@ Make me Sus

[@wayne113]

It will help commuters in North Houston (Huntsville) get to their jobs in South Houston (Dickinson). The city center is just flyover country now and a place to receive all the floodwater runoff from the new developments surrounding it.

[@jimbotx5855]

Well done piece!

[@poseidon3201]

Chinatown moved to Bellaire Blvd however I would like to see downtown Houston with a second Chinatown. Even Greenspoint has a Chinatown that's bordered by Veterans Memorial Drive and Gears road

[@ScottDaileyYOUTUBE]

I wish so bad we still had the old chinatown. the new one is great for food but terrible for cool urban spaces.

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@ScottDaileyKZbinIt can still be revitalized and recreated. Nothing is standing in the way is it?

[@thzene4967]

This isn't the reason I was expecting. My mouth literally dropped when you said we were discussing flattening entire blocks for highway expansion in modern day. Funny, we're always given this idea that doing similar things for increasing residential density or passenger rail are impossible.

[@JeanEDeaux]

This is not about expanding a highway but instead COMBINING two major highways so that one of the old ones can be completely REMOVED from the downtown area. smh

[@thzene4967]

@JeanEDeaux Do you know what the word "widen" means? When you say "combined", does that equate to cutting the number of lanes down in this area? Because that would run counter to everything I've read. When you watch the video about blocks literally being flattened for the project, is that make believe in your head? Just trying to understand your logic and figure out why your 1+1 is equaling 5, that's all.

[@dps6198]

Did you know that all of this information has been available for years? It's in the Houston Planning Dept. The Loop, beltway 8, 288, etc. has been on the table for decades. All anyone has to do is ask. Had anyone asked they would know where to build or open a business and where to stay away. Don't blame TxDot for the business owners lack of due diligence. If you're going to put your own money in a business you better know about future freeways, you better know about current crime, you better know about possible flooding, there's so many things you need to know but most people don't bother. The words I didn't know seems to be a battle cry for business owners who don't do their due diligence and want to blame their ignorance on somebody else.

[@billy3603]

FORGET THE HIGHWAY! Put that money and more at building one of the countries best intercity transit systems. Make it so you hardly need a car in Houston. That would make Houston one of my favorite cities in the country. SO MUCH CULTURE. LOVE THE PEOPLE.

[@Random.ChanneI]

America is a joke unfortunately nowadays :( I have no needs tor travel again to the Usa anytime soon. You have to rent a car everywhere and all the little towns look the same. A big street with a Walmart and Target, and an abandoned old street sadly.

[@Paul_C]

It always has been a joke... from the start.

[@HotaruGlaive]

I remember when they widened the Katy Freeway to reduce traffic - except it still has the worst traffic.

[@Donald-jm4hi]

U R so right MO lanes for MO traffic

[@wayne113]

look how much Katy and beyond blew up after the completion. The city center now gets to enjoy the worst flooding I can remember.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Well that’s NOT what this project is about. It’s about the removal of I45 from downtown.

[@marybourgeois5235]

CONCRETE, CONCRETE, CONCRETE......AND THEY WONDER WHY WE FLOOD HERE SO BAD! DUHHHHH

[@JermaniBurroughs]

Meanwhile North Carolina & Virginia DOTs are planning to expand Amtrak rail service & have a mostly NEC equivalent Rail between Richmond - Raleigh & Ridership is booming in Vrigina & North Carolina

[@maroon9273]

They need to tunnel it or cancelled/block the widening project. Sink and cover current highway. This widening is a overkill.

[@keeblertime1486]

Lot of good times in that area back in the in the late 90s early 2000s.

[@EdwardM-t8p]

Obscene. How wide will this road be? Thirty lanes???

[@vxy357]

The whole thing looks like its gonna be one big clusterf*ck!

[@tomasdiaz1000]

This is shameful. We need transportation initiatives that get wheels OFF of our roads. Highway expansion has been proven time and time again that it does NOT work. San Antonio, where I live continues to expand outwards, and we’re the largest city in the country without a light-rail system. We’re undergoing an immense highway expansion that will perpetuate the car dependent lifestyle and further separate our communities. It’s just a shame that things are the way that they are - TXDOT has no regard for the future or betterment of society, and they’re always thinking about the short term, and cheapest way to put a bandaid on a gaping hole in terms of transportation. What a useless govt organization that collects taxpayer money to fund projects that Americans DO NOT WANT OR SUPPORT.

[@JeanEDeaux]

This is entirely about REMOVING a highway not expanding it. 🤦‍♂️

[@HoustonRideshare]

This project is exactly what the city needs. Bravo!

[@burkewendt2786]

Going to be such a bummer when Neil's Bar gets torn down. That's my favorite bar in Houston

[@Albasirth]

Are they going to move to a different location?

[@Jason-hq1mk]

Had to scroll way too far to see this. Love Neil's!

[@davidfromtexas713]

​@@AlbasirthNew location coming to Mckinney/York

[@vicc5789]

No wonder that apartment complex that was by the bayou is completely demolished

[@gener2682]

Most of it flooded during Harvey.

[@asrr62]

Cant they do anything about the surface parkinglots!? I have a whole plan to rezone the city of phoenix i just dont get the poor planning!!

[@ScottDaileyYOUTUBE]

They tend to infill as property values increase, we will see here! Much of that side of town has been surface parking for a long time :(

[@arnomrnym6329]

"Just one more lane!"

[@allen_p]

That's where the old Bordon Dairy Building used to be. A below grade freeway next to a bayou that floods the whole downtown. What could go wrong? Some developer wants the land that I-45 sits on.

[@JeanEDeaux]

The highway is already below grade is it not??

[@SeanAlegator]

Adding more lanes cause more traffic than alleviating it. Turns out Americans forgot about the importance of high speed rail transport (more like don't know it) and all other kinds of transport. Cars will kill people more than help. The truth about cars is that no one in America like me knows how to follow the rules of the road.

[@stickynorth]

I think the only way to stop crap like this from happening to mandate it out of existence along with offering better alternatives which in this case is ANYTHING!

[@brucehain]

Bury it! (I mean the highway, not the neighborhood)

[@neohistoryfan1014]

What a waste of money! I can't believe they're gonna demolish a building that's only a little over 20 years old!

[@Pursuitofhappiness__]

This project is about to cost 1trillion dollars and take a min of 30 yrs to finish 😫. MY LORD

[@mikeewin7544]

I lived in Houston 1969-1984. I live in the Western MA Berkshires now. Insanity to sanity. You can have Houston.

[@PSTXFL]

You live in the middle of nothing, a region of irrelevance. Houston is a major city that supports 7.5 million people and has a $500 GDP just in Harris County. Places like Houston are the backbone of this country, not where you live.

[@nottawa86]

yeah it sucks. by the way, my uncle lives over that way too (in egremont)

[@JeanEDeaux]

Thanks. We’ll improve it!!

[@Elon2024]

Expanding highway is the worst idea especially when there is enough traffic already. Houston should build an above ground Train system like Chicago. This will bring in revenue and connect people without driving.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Absolutely. Elevated rail is the only way rail will work in Houston. Guaranteed.

[@Thetechvlog]

That’s a lot of property tax revenue lost!

[@c0rnichon]

And even more taxpayer's money wasted on outdated urban planning.

[@Mrcodewarrior77006]

They need to do the same thing to 288 and reconnect the 3rd Ward to Midtown and the Museum District.

[@frankpousson7814]

It’s 2nd Ward. Not EaDo.

[@Brand-pn5yz]

If only they seperated the rail from the roads.

[@gener2682]

No because that would make sense. Lets make traffic worse by putting trains in the streets. We can destroy business all along the route too by limiting access.

[@Brand-pn5yz]

​@@gener2682how would that destroy businesses?

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@gener2682Those trains should ALL be ELEVATED. They would be super efficient and way more speedy to travel. Also with routes to BOTH airports and the highly populated west side of the city.

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@Brand-pn5yzIt actually did starve those businesses during construction and then afterwards due to a lack of parking and confusion about the new traffic patterns.

[@Anurania]

I hope they planned this well. Whenever I go downtown on 59 the traffic grinds to a halt with people switching lanes to get onto 45 or 288 or 59. Road switching should be a process that gives people a couple of miles to get into the right lanes without slowing down.

[@ladylioness9808]

This is the East End. Not East Houston

[@edwardmiessner6502]

It will be a net negative for the city, and a huge net negative at that. The only highway expansion project that has benefited a city, ever, is Boston's Big Dig accomplished by the state DOT.

[@dark12ain]

I want to see what the park on top would look like honestly sounds like a sick idea

[@ScottDaileyYOUTUBE]

There is a lot of momentum behind the park, I am hopeful it will happen.

[@scottpetty4568]

@@ScottDaileyKZbin This really is insane. Whatever pumping system they design will be overwhelmed when evacuation arteries are most desperately needed. Houston is not Boston nor is it Dallas. A below grade freeway will flood in Houston, and having such a flood close all of the freeways at a choke point looks like an easily predictable disaster in the making.

[@gener2682]

The freeways are designed to flood so the homes and businesses won't. You should be evacuated well before the flooding happens or just shelter in place.

[@JeanEDeaux]

There’s one in Dallas already, of course. 🙄

[@JeanEDeaux]

@@scottpetty4568The highway is ALREADY below grade. Does it currently flood?

[@Niarbeht]

JUST ONE MORE LANE, BRO, TRUST ME BRO

[@markanthony1004]

This is a lot like what's happened and is still happening around downtown San Antonio. From middle class neighborhoods to more I guess hipster and artsy kinds of restaurants and homes and so on. Idk if it's a good or bad thing but it's far from the worst things I've seen here

[@horatiohuskisson5471]

Why don’t American cites invest in metro systems! Highway expansion in 2023 is insane!

[@Myeternalperspective]

Because unfortunately they’re run by greedy corrupt fools

[@gradplanner]

Houstonians didn't want to leave their cars. The same Houstonians who complain about traffic.

[@robk9388]

Houston is way too hot during the summer that even stepping outside for a few minutes can be deadly and that’s why it’s better to use vehicles

[@edwardmiessner6502]

Often metro systems are suggested and the NIMBYs come out in force and successfully shoot them down.

[@gener2682]

Houston is spread out and has no zoning so no centralized business centers other than downtown. Business is everywhere for many miles in every direction. It will never be economical to build rail in every direction to every place. Houston was designed to be a car city with wide downtown streets and many connector roadways. Oil capital of the world. Do you really think cars will go away for rail here?

[@charlesrocks]

I used to frequent St. Emanuel almost daily when I worked downtown. I’m really disappointed to hear of this regressive plan. Houston city leadership is so self-destructive. It’s almost as if they don’t want people living and investing into the area.

[@wayne113]

TXDOT is very powerful and pro suburbia

[@JeanEDeaux]

This is actually about improving downtown and creating more connectivity and space. i feel many of you are missing the entire point of this project.

[@jwellsmediainc.4593]

This is partly why I’m beginning to dislike Houston. All it cares about is unsustainable growth at the expense of all else.

[@JeanEDeaux]

This is about the removal of a highway which most residents would seemingly support

[@heinuchung8680]

Cars are people too.

[@uncleshrek32]

A year later... They're still there.

[@rioblu]

I'm not trying to get into a cultural/ tribal war argument but anyone that's lived in Houston in the last 50 years knows that the Pierce Elevated HAS TO BE REPLACED! The absolute worst bottleneck in Houston.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Not replaced, but REMOVED. 💯💯💯‼️

[@NicholasFritsche]

I work in Houston, it's built in a swamp. Any road way built under ground level will flood.

[@JeanEDeaux]

59/69 is already below grade so what’s gonna be the difference?

[@c0rnichon]

A vibrant neighborhood in Houston? Let's replace it with a fucking highway... Texas is so stuck in the 1950s.

[@wskroll]

We don't need anymore freeway lanes. Just maintain the roads we have. That's not going to happen though.

[@leann4925]

I grew up in Houston before 610 was built and remember many homes were bought up to build it. From the get go many builders came into Houston and built where ever and in my opinion they screwed Houston. Especially the flooding problem as well as a vital transportation system. Very poor planning by the city it's self. The reason I say this is I do know back in the 70's and even perhaps 60's out at the University of Houston they taught forecast of growth in the southern part of the US. Also there were flooding problems back then. Due to Houston becoming a sanctuary city crime has also escalated. In growing up it saddens me to see what has happened to Houston.

[@xxZerosumxx]

I dont understand why they cant make the pierce elevated a double deck freeway.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Because the entire point is to remove 45, not expand it. 🤦‍♂️

[@BobbyJackson-up7gb]

Houston needs a rail transit system

[@asrr62]

Get rid of the frontage roads they are just dangerous!

[@jg40x]

I just moved to Houston a few years ago. This city does not do a good job preserving historic sites and historic buildings. Houston rather demolish an old art deco building and turn it into either a vacant parking lot, a plain garage, or an office building which eventually will be vacant. I used to work next to EADO and enjoyed the food and atmosphere all long St. Emmanuel. I heard this district used to be the Old Chinatown and then it was just old abandoned warehouses until it got revived to what it is today, Downtown Houston offers very little entertainment spots all around. It's a shame how the city just keeps downtown a WORK-ONLY-NO-FUN environment. Even Austin and Fort Worth have a better downtown life than Houston. Shame how this project is going to destroy a good part of the city that has just been revived...

[@jackhuffman9313]

Please get rid of the pierce elevated freeway Over all I think it’s better to do this than not to do it, it sux but…

[@JeanEDeaux]

Well, that’s what this is all about. Downtown will now be wiiiide open on that end. 🎉

[@TyrantTitan.]

Bye Felicia

[@kevinleon01]

net negative

[@jobsearch5871]

this is not about relieving traffic , its about making more pay roads to tax you

[@Mayito_Tamps]

Tearing Down Pierce Elevated There Is Gonna Be More Traffic Its A Mistake!!!!

[@stevens1041]

Freeways aren't inherently bad. However, big expressways like this should be kept outside the urban core--to the outskirts of a city, where the warehousing and distribution districts are. Houston is doubling down on a flawed model

[@187chriss4]

This will create a bigger bottle neck that’s already present. No need for car accident. It’s exactly there where the traffic begins and it’s annoying that ppl slow down to only go back to speed after passing this section.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Okay y’all, this particular project has….the POTENTIAL ….to really alter the fabric of the eastern portion of our City of Houston in a REALLY good way. It really does. …..BUT…… It’s gonna take soooo gaddamn long and be soooo gaddamn disruptive to actually accomplish, that it’s gonna be ridiculous, and there will definitely be doubts spawned about whether or not it’s even worth it. And this is understandable. Right? NOW, to the business at hand::::::: The park to be on top of this highway, if done “right” has the possibility to really make this a complete city-game changer. Again, if it is done ➡️➡️RIGHT‼️⬅️⬅️ Houston has a very valid and long history of doing things the functional, but CHEAPEST way. 🤦‍♂️-Buildings (are just boxes), roads (plain, no palm trees, shrubs or other trees planted to “pretty” it up, or stone features, nothing etc), parks(just basic plots of grass, no decorative gates or statues or big artwork), monuments and all. These things are all cheap as possible, visually unattractive, BUT they’re all functional. The “park” Houston eventually places on top will be an easy comparison to what Dallas has already done. We shalt ALL see for sure if what I’m saying is a hundred percent true or if we’re dealing with a whole new City of Houston. I mean, they all do indeed get the intended job done right, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯? 🤦‍♂️🙄 Just really look around and then compare what you see here in Houston to other “MAJOR” cities and you will see a crystal-clear difference. With Houston being on the downside. Just take a really GOOD LOOK AND COMPARE. 🤦‍♂️ I wish with everything in me, that that will NOT be the case here. Now is really NOT the time nor ESPECIALLY the place to pull that cheap, but functional, ahh dumb stunt. Please, oh please 🙏 don’t do this, Houston. Actually do actually LOOKS GOOD and that FUNCTIONS WELL AND actually LOOKS GOOD and this time 🙏. Dallas even though it’s number THREE city in Texas, has the far larger reputation and popularity vs Houston. Even in skylines people say they prefer Dallas even though Houston’s is 4X bigger AND it’s much taller. And Austin is soon to pass us up in both y’all! Look it up!! Dallas just LOOKS better as a city because they actually TRY to. Houston just doesn’t even try. Basic Betty. And let’s not even compare the light rail systems 🤦‍♂️, embarrassing to say the least. Whew. I just hope and pray that Houston at least TRIES to get this one not only right, but make it GOOD!! Houston has FLAVOR and natural culture that Austin and Dallas WISH they had. They’re both bland CULTURALLY and that’s where Houston wins and what makes it special it just doesn’t use it to its full potential. PLEASE get this one right HOUSTON. PLEASE 🙏

[@klenzgaming]

after the katy boondoggle, i thought i had seen the worse of wasteful DOT spending but this new 45 project takes the cake of stupidity.

[@jw77019]

That area was depressed and now revived. Now they want to demolish it and build a bigger road that will be clogged with traffic. Every major expansion ever done has caused worse traffic than before it was built. This is a bad idea and will ruin the area.

[@AdrianJohnson34]

Houston & The State needs to stop being so Stupid and put a damn train in the middle of the Highways. It's a crying shame there no train going to neither airport. How about a train to the Woodlands and on a hot day a train to the beach front in Galvestion. 1 train car takes 50 cars off the road. Everytime they expand highways, that bring more cars more traffic. Duh! Get rid off that stupid old HOV lane. There's hardly any cars in it anyway,

[@JeanEDeaux]

💯💯💯‼️

[@kptlt.phillipthomsen5973]

JUST ONE MORE LANE I SWEAR ITLL ALL BE FIXED See yall when its done in 2042

[@EdwardM-t8p]

2042!? It took less time to build Boston's Big Dig! (1990 to 2004)

[@sylviamontalvo5352]

I think it's going to be a negative for Houston.

[@Nothinghere0101]

0:36 There are no good things about it :(

[@NicholasFritsche]

Not happy with weather in Texas. Wait and it will change.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Thanks? 🤔

[@mark52111]

What does removing the Pierce elevated do for anyone other than Houston centric urban planners? Waste of taxpayer money and existing infrastructure (that had been rebuilt not long ago). Robbing Peter to pay Paul. I'd much rather see the money spent on connecting metro light rail to the IAH airport (which should have been the very first section of light rail).

[@microcosm1957]

There’s a way they can add the same amount of lanes without destroying all the businesses on St Emanuel… They should keep the current 45 path, but put it underground with caps at the current Pierce Elevated right of way. They can keep the current width, 6 lanes through downtown, and just widen it as it gets closer to 69. Where they currently plan to divert 45 to 69, they should only add 4 Lane downtown bypass on the proposed 10/69 route which connects to 45 north and south of downtown.

[@WilliamJones-sf5pt]

There are two bayous that flow together west of downtown Houston and then flow through it. Why not convert the skyscrapers into ships? This way, downtown can become part of tge Houston Ship Channel! Seriously! One thing Houston has going for it is both Allen Parkway and Memorial Expressway. According to future plans, one won't be able to get to them on 45 to drive on them. It is going to make those older expressways too busy!

[@JeanEDeaux]

Well this idea is definitely one that should have been explored. Hopefully it was. The other option would be, of course, this one, to completely remove the Pierce. Capped or removed, it needs to go.

[@JeanEDeaux]

Well this idea is definitely one that should have been explored. Hopefully it was. The other option would be, of course, this one, to completely remove the Pierce. Capped or removed, it needs to go. I DEFINITELY don’t believe they need that much ROW or additional lanes for what they are planning on the East side however. Those business don’t all need to be destroyed for a highway realignment. NOPE. 💯💯💯🤦‍♂️

[@tiffanyjames7150]

This it is complete BS! Money grab and waste of time and a major traffic nightmare!

[@TheDnlnext]

The way government and TXDOT moves, this will be completed way over budget in a decade. We probably have to vote for more bonds, otherwise it won’t ever get completed. Who ever wins these contracts and sub contracts (“wins” you know bribes city council) will only have 10 people working on this project and 7 of those 10 will likely be construction site manages that point fingers all day - having been in construction in my past life, I seen this play out. Certainly they will expand and just add expensive HOV tolls making it useless to most - much like the Katy freeway. Hey those mostly empty metro busses like it. I digress.

[@Followerofchrist2091]

Look. The fact of the matter is they’re not expanding the highway system. They are making/ transitioning it into a better maintained and better traffic junction system. If you live in Houston you know how bad the I-10/45 corridor is, especially 288 and 45, and just going down through down town in general is horrible because of the random merge lanes, the junctions are messed up etc.

[@jeremyn2008]

This is BS!!

[@John-js9je]

Developers, big monied interests, and the DINKS just south and west of the Pierce Elevated will be the big winners in this plan. Inner City families (remember them?) will continue to be pushed out to the suburbs.