Why freeways work
Freeways are a remarkable and underappreciated asset for both mobility and accessibility in a dispersed, polycentric region.
They are remarkable because of the amount of people and goods they can serve efficiently, day after day, to keep an economy moving and a region accessible and enjoyable.
I call them unappreciated because I have heard countless misconceptions about them throughout my career, including more than 15 years as the executive of a regional business group that focuses on transportation in North Carolina's Research Triangle region.
In fairness, some of the misconceptions are understandable. When people think of "freeway," they often think of LA (and not happy thoughts). Or perhaps they reflect on the sort-of-true saw, "relieving congestion by widening a road is like dealing with added weight by loosening your belt."
Let's sing the praises of freeways a bit.
A freeway is the highest level of "limited access" roadway - no driveways, no cross streets. However, I prefer the simpler term "freeway" to "limited access", because it speaks to its core characteristic and benefit.
Freeway means "free flow" - in other words - the through movement does not stop.
You can take a road with traffic signals, and no matter how many lanes wide you go, there will be times when the signal is red.. Travel time obviously goes up when you aren't moving.
A freeway, on the other hand, will have uninterrupted flow at every intersection - because there aren't any intersections. Every side street is either truncated or bridged.
One frequent criticism is that congested freeways do "stop" during rush hours. That is true, - and worthy of a separate post. However, freeways that are "congested" are still uncongested the vast majority of the day, and provide high speed service.
Higher speeds mean increased metropolitan accessibility - because you can reach more destinations in a given time.
The limited access nature of freeways is important. It allows the higher speeds, and paradoxically it allows for increased safety compared to any other arterial roadway. Crash rates are almost always significantly lower on freeways.
There is more.
When you do widen a freeway, in particular one with sufficient right-of-way and adequate space under bridges, you get the best of all worlds: additional rush hour capacity, shorter peak periods, without the tradeoffs associated with widening other roadway types.
Widen a boulevard? You just made it harder for pedestrians to cross, you made the signals take longer, and overall less livable. Widen a freeway, and you gain capacity.
Done right - and by this I mean using sensitive and innovative highway design for operations coupled with effective land use - they can be a backbone of regional prosperity.
Joe Milazzo II, PE, Executive Director, Regional Transportation Alliance
RTA is the voice of the regional business community on transportation
