Hi Austin friends.
I’m feeling called to share about what I feel is an ethical imperative for the city.
The Texas Department of Transportation is planning on using $4.5 billion of your tax money to expand I-35 to a massive 22 lanes.
Doing so would be a massive setback for Austin and other cities in its path.
The goal would be to improve traffic in Austin. However, just as more lanes has failed everywhere else, it will fail here. That’s because when you add lanes and roads, it makes it more of a necessity to use a car. This means MORE people use cars. This means more cars on the road, which means more traffic. That’s why the cities with the most lanes often have the worst traffic.
Here is a simple YouTube video explaining this concept, called “induced demand.”
Instead, giving people options besides driving takes cars off the roads and relieves traffic. This $4.5 billion would reduce traffic, improve air quality, and give you all more options in your day-to-day life if it were spent on public transit, bike safety, and pedestrian safety.
This type of backward 1960s thinking also hits home for me on an ethical level.
Historically, constructing highways in cities goes through the path of least political resistance, which means almost always poor inner-city communities. I-35 wasn’t an exception. If this goes through, it will tear down hundreds of homes in predominantly Latino areas that already have higher poverty rates.
Fortunately, there is a nonprofit called Rethink35 that is pushing back and providing alternatives. There are petitions to sign and fundraising to support a lawsuit against TxDOT if you’re feeling called. However, I believe what would be most impactful, is volunteering. I also just filled out their volunteer form to help from afar in any way I can, so we will be in this together.
A lot is going on in the world, and taking political action can feel paralyzing. We may not be able to halt wars, but when something is going on in your own backyard, individual actions, your individual action, can be a tipping point.
For those who have been to New York City and love Greenwich Village, there’s an incredible story about how Jane Jacobs rallied members of the Greenwich Village community, at the time a working-class neighborhood, to push back against a plan to build a highway directly through it.
If it had succeeded, today there would be no Washington Square Park and little resemblance of the picture-perfect brownstone stoops that we love about the neighborhood. Most likely, it would be a poverty-stricken area, as was the fate of most neighborhoods in the path of highway plans.
Stopping that highway began with the action and commitment of one women in her own community.
I truly believe the future of Austin is in many ways at stake here, whether the state of Texas will double down on the mistakes of the 20th century, or begin to right the wrongs.
I will attach a few resources here, including the Rethink35 website, and a TikTok I found in case you’d like to consume this information in that medium. Please feel free to reach out to me as well.
Two Ways to Take Action
1) Volunteer with Rethink35
Check out their events, which are both in-person and online. I messaged them on Instagram, and they said their monthly social is a great way to get started. The next one is on July 6.
2) Support the Lawsuit
If you’re feeling motivated to help but not ready to commit time, supporting the current lawsuit is another great way to help. Learn more here.