Let's be clear--the nation's entire transportation system is deteriorating. While Hartford certainly could do with a restructuring of its disastrous and abysmal transportation options, one certainly could do a lot better than the currently proposed $15 billion plan set forth by the Bronins' cronies, as reported recently in the CT Mirror: There’s a new plan for realigning Hartford’s highways. Is the third time the charm?
If one is serious about fixing Hartford's convoluted, broken road system, then it should be replaced with a better system, not one that's equally broken, or worse, and one that also looks to the future, not just one that seeks to keep current problems at bay.
Such a road plan should consider using new materials such as compressed styrofoam, foam glass aggregates such as Glavel, or other new technologies and include the embedding of solar panels (like those employed by SolarRoadways). It should allow for pedestrian, bicycle, and other eco-friendly modes of transit, as well as provide wireless charging for electric vehicles and other such devices.Modular construction techniques like the European Union's new plastic road initiative should be considered and modular traffic control systems that can quickly alter traffic routes in the event of emergencies or accidents, autonomously, should be thought about. Of course, 3D printing of roads should also be considered--something that should cut construction costs considerably.
Our roads and highways should pave a path forward that brings Hartford into the 22nd century, not one that keeps us stuck where we are. Thought should be put into autonomously-driven vehicle-only lanes for all sorts of vehicles to utilize in a rapid transit system where AI systems would be able to safely navigate entry and exit.
Many of these features would be more cost-effective (especially over the long-term) than the nonsensical flapdoodle proposed by the current $15 billion plan. And nearly all of the technologies I've mentioned either are in use today or in the final stages of testing.
Apparently, nobody in planning has the wisdom or the foresight to think in such logical terms or with any sort of vision for the future; rather, their only flights of fancy and imagination come in the form of creating ingenious ways of how to further enrich their and/or their friends' coffers, offshore bank accounts, and other tax havens.
Don't think Mayor Bronin and his wife don't have their hands in the pot. We all know they're the white monied Democratic-powered machine that oils gentrified development in Hartford these days. With the Mayor's wife heading this Hartford 400 project's development plans, well, it's all but a shoo-in, isn't it, folks?
Is your town or city planning to repair or upgrade its roadways? If so, what new and visionary means are they taking into account in the planning process? Let us know in the comments below. Let's begin sharing great ideas and moving our villages, towns, and cities forward!