The Freeway Revolts refer to a phenomenon encountered in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s, where planned freeway contstruction in many U.S. cities was halted due to widespread public opposition; especially of those whose neighborhoods would be disrupted or displaced by the proposed freeways. Such "revolts" occurred in many U.S. cities, such as San Francisco, Portland, Oregon, and Baltimore. In many cities, one can find ghost ramps, abruptly-terminating freeway alignments, and short stretches of freeway in the middle of nowhere, all of which are evidence of larger projects which were mothballed. San Francisco skyline. ... Portland skyline. ... Nickname: Charm City Location in Maryland Founded  -Incorporated 30 July 1729  1797 County Independent city Mayor Martin OMalley (Dem) Area  - Total  - Water 349. ...

After World War II, there was a major drive to build a freeway network in the United States; including (but not limited to) the Interstate Highway System. Design and construction began in earnest in the 1950s, and many cities (as well as rural areas) were subjected to the bulldozer. However, many of the proposed freeway routes were drawn up without considering local interest; in many cases the construction of the freeway system was considered a regional (or national) issue which trumped local concerns. Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (over 11 miles) into the air, August 9, 1945. ... A typical rural stretch of Interstate highway, with two lanes in each direction separated by a large grassy median, and with cross-traffic limited to overpasses and underpasses. ...

Starting in the 1960s, when many neighborhood activists became aware of the affect that freeway construction was having on local neighborhoods, effective city opposition to many freeway routes in many cities was raised; this led to the modification or cancellation of many proposed routes. The freeway revolts continued into the 1970s, further enhanced by concern over the energy crisis and rising fuel costs, as well as a growing environmentalist movement. An energy crisis is any great shortfall (or price rise) in the supply of energy to an economy. ... Environmentalism is the support or involvement with the environmental movement by environmentalists. ...

San Francisco

Late 1940s San Francisco Planning Department Freeway Plan

In San Francisco, Freeway Revolt is the name given to public opposition against building freeways through San Francisco, California in the 1950s. It started in 1956 when the San Francisco Chronicle published a map (See image) made in 1947 or 1948 by the San Francisco Planning Department showing possible routes for freeways through the city, and by the construction of the Embarcadero Freeway. In 1959, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to cancel seven out of ten proposed freeways through the city, including the Embarcadero Freeway and the Central Freeway. Construction was stopped on both freeways and they were never completed, though the existing sections were opened. In the 1960s, there were further protests against one of the three freeways that was not canceled in 1959, a continuation of Interstate 80 through the Panhandle and Golden Gate Park. Due to the protests, the Board of Supervisors voted to cancel that plan as well. Image File history File links 1947 or 1948 plan for freeways through San Francisco by the San Francisco Planning Department Image seems to have come from the San Francisco Planning Department, US Department of Transportation seems to be the best category for it. ... Image File history File links 1947 or 1948 plan for freeways through San Francisco by the San Francisco Planning Department Image seems to have come from the San Francisco Planning Department, US Department of Transportation seems to be the best category for it. ... A typical rural freeway (Interstate 5 in the Central Valley of California). ... San Francisco skyline. ... Millennia: 1st millennium - 2nd millennium - 3rd millennium // Events and trends The 1950s in Western society was marked with a sharp rise in the economy for the first time in almost 30 years and return to the 1920s-type consumer society built on credit and boom-times, as well as the... 1956 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The San Francisco Chronicle, the self-described Voice of the West, is Northern Californias largest newspaper. ... 1947 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1948 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Section of the Embarcadero Freeway in front of the Ferry Building during demolition The Embarcadero Freeway was a freeway in San Francisco. ... 1959 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... San Francisco skyline. ... The Central Freeway is a freeway that was part of US Highway 101 in San Francisco (US 101 was resigned to use side streets around 2000). ... This article provides extensive lists of events and significant personalities of the 1960s. ... Interstate 80 as seen from an overpass in Davis, California Interstate 80 is the second-longest interstate highway in the United States. ... The Panhandle is a park in San Francisco, California that forms a panhandle with Golden Gate Park. ... The domed Conservatory of Flowers is one of the worlds largest. ...

Opposition against the Embarcadero Freeway continued, and in 1985, the Board of Supervisors voted to demolish it. It was closed after 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and demolished shortly thereafter. The earthquake also caused the Central Freeway to be demolished. The Fell-Turk section was demolished immediately after the earthquake and the Van Ness-Fell section was demolished in 2003. 1985 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Loma Prieta earthquake The Loma Prieta earthquake occurred on October 17, 1989 in the greater San Francisco Bay Area in California at 5:04 pm local time and measured 7. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Portland, Oregon

Shortly after WWII, the city leaders of Portland, Oregon commissioned famed transportation planner Robert Moses to desgin a freeway network for the city. Six freeway routes were proposed. Four of the six were eventually constructed (in some cases in the face of intense opposition); these are: Portland skyline. ... Robert Moses (December 18, 1888–July 29, 1981) was the master builder of 20th century New York City and its suburbs. ...

• The Banfield Freeway (Interstate 84)
• The Baldock Freeway (Interstate 5)
• The Stadium Freeway (Interstate 405)
• The East Portland Freeway (Interstate 205)

However, several; other proposed freeways--the Rose City Freeway, the Interstate 505 freeway, and the Mt. Hood Freeway, were far more controversial. Each proposed route cut through established city neighborhoods. The Rose City Freeway and I-505 were soon cancelled, however a far more intense battle arose over the Mt. Hood Freeway; a proposed routing of U.S. Highway 26 and Interstate 80N that stretched from the Marquam Bridge out to the city Sandy at the base of Mount Hood. One section of the freeway--an expressway stretch between Sandy and Gresham was built; but the remainder was controversial. The 1976 mayoral race, between Neil Goldschmidt and Frank Ivancie--with Goldshcmidt representing the anti-freeway side and Ivancie representing the supporters of the freeway--became a de-facto referendum on the proposed route. Interstate 84 is the designation of two interstate highways in the United States. ... Interstate 5, or I-5, is an interstate highway along the west coast of the United States. ... Interstate 405 is the designation of three different tertiary interstate routes of Interstate 5. ... Interstate 205 is the designation for two different tertiary interstate routes. ... Interstate 505 in Oregon was an intended 1. ... United States Highway 26 is an east-west United States highway. ... The Marquam Bridge The Marquam Bridge is a double deck cantilever bridge that carries Interstate 5 traffic across the Willamette River south of downtown Portland, Oregon. ... Sandy is a city located in Clackamas County, Oregon and named after the nearby Sandy River. ... Mount Hood is a dormant stratovolcano in northern Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. ... An expressway is a divided highway, usually 4 lanes or wider in size, where direct access to adjacent properties has been eliminated. ... Gresham is a city located in Multnomah County, Oregon. ... Neil Edward Goldschmidt (born June 16, 1940) is a former politician and businessman living in the State of Oregon and a member of the United States Democratic Party. ...

The election was won by Goldschmidt; and the freeway was cancelled. The proposed federal funds for the project were instead made available to a planned light rail line (built in the 1980's) which connected Portland to the eastern suburb of Gresham. (This light-rail network has been expanded three times; with lines now running to Portland International Airport, Hillsboro, and North Portland; further expansions to Clackamas and Milwaukie are being planned. This article is about light rail systems in general. ... For the airport of Portland, Maine, see Portland International Jetport Portland International Airport (IATA airport code:PDX, ICAO airport code: KPDX) is the largest airport in Oregon. ... Hillsboro is a city located in Washington County, Oregon. ... Clackamas is a census-designated place located in Clackamas County, Oregon. ... Milwaukie is a city located in Clackamas County, Oregon. ...

In addition to the cancellation of three proposed freeway routes; Portland saw another milestone in the freeway revolts--the destruction of an already-existing freeway. The first freeway to be built through the city--Harbor Drive (along the western shore of the Willamette River), which was (at the time) the route of Oregon Highway 99W--was demolished and replaced with Tom McCall Waterfront Park. 99W was moved onto nearby Front Avenue (the stretch of 99W through Portland would be later decomissioned), and little evidence remains that there was once a freeway along the waterfront. (It should be noted that the removal of Harbor Drive wasn't all that controversial; the recent construction of I-5 on the river's East Bank, and I-405 through the downtown core, made Harbor Drive no longer necessary). The Willamette River (pronounced wil-LAM-met) is a tributary of the Columbia, approximately 240 mi (386 km) long, in northwestern Oregon in the United States. ... Oregon Highway 99 is a state highway that runs between the northern and southern border of Oregon. ...

Other Oregon freeway revolts occurred in Salem and Eugene. In Salem, the Interstate 305 project was shelved and replaced with the Salem Parkway, a non-freeway route along the same alignment. In Eugene, the Roosevelt Freeway project was cancelled, and the Belt Line Road (originally proposed as a beltway around the Eugene/Springfield area) was severly curtailed; only the northwestern segment (connecting I-5 in the north with Oregon Highway 126 in the west) was ever built. However, Eugene is now facing an active controversy over the proposed West Eugene Parkway project, which some critics have claimed is little more than a scaled-back version of the original Roosevelt Freeway proposal. State Capitol building in Salem Salem is the capital of the state of Oregon in the United States of America, and county seat of Marion County. ... Eugene is the third largest city [1] and boasts the second largest metropolitan population [2] in the state of Oregon, and is also the county seat of Lane County, Oregon. ... Interstate 305 was a proposed spur of Interstate 5 into Salem, Oregon. ... Belt Line Road is mostly a limited-access freeway in Eugene, Oregon, although some portions serve as an expressway and surface street. ... A beltway (American English), ring road or orbital motorway (British English) is a circumferential highway found around many cities. ... Springfield is a city located in Lane County, Oregon, separated from Eugene, Oregon primarily by the I-5 highway. ... Oregon Highway 126 is a state highway which connects central and western Oregon and serves the southern Willamette Valley. ... Oregon Highway 126 is a state highway which connects central and western Oregon and serves the southern Willamette Valley. ...

Sources

General

• "Stop the Road: Freeway Revolts in American Cities", Raymond A. Mohl Journal of Urban History.2004; 30: 674-706

San Francisco

• The Freeway Revolt, from bikesummer.org
• The Great Freeway Revolt, from the San Francisco Bay Guardian
• Freeway Revolt from misterSF.com

Portland

• The Mount Hood Freeway
• Oregon Highways: US Highway 26
• Willamette Week: "Highway to Hell"
• Interview with David Hupp (an advisor to the Multnomah County commission who was instrumental in cancelling the Mt. Hood Freeway).