THE USA and its highways.

- hOW URBAN PLANNING LEADS TO ENVIRONMENTAL RACISM

Highways, motorways, freeways - whatever you prefer to call them - are a fundamental part of city planning. Connecting us from A to B, allowing cars to drive at faster paces in and around a city with ease. Whilst every corner of the world has them, the highway is somewhat synonymous with the US and American culture - the image of large trucks flying down 12 lane roads with US flag stickers on the boot, and endless rows of retail stores on either side. However, there is a dark truth behind the image created of space and ‘freedom’ of highways, which has roots in racial segregation and inequality.

The American dream of the mid 20th century pushed the idea of living in a suburban, car dependent neighbourhood, which prioritised driving and parking over walkability and urban density. As a result, many older, denser neighbourhoods of American cities were demolished and replaced with highways and intersections - putting the car above the pedestrian.

Despite the high levels of pollution in the neighbourhood, the residents generate a very miniscule amount of emissions themselves compared to the vehicles entering from other areas - putting them in a position of ‘pollution inequity’.

Another example of an area which has fallen victim to environmental racism is the 15th district of Syracuse, New York state. In 1960, construction started on a highway extension through the 15th district of Syracuse, where at the time the vast majority of the city’s black population lived. Consequently, over 1,000 families were displaced to make way for the construction of the I-81 highway, resulting in fragmented communities and failing businesses. Further on, the effects of the highway construction are still evident, from the way public health in the area has worsened, whilst crime rates and poverty increased.

Syracuse still remains a highly separated city with one of the highest poverty rates amongst non-white communities.

From these examples we can learn how urban design can be used as a weapon to exacerbate existing inequalites within society, and how American highway construction is still to this day upholding racial segregation despite all the progress made in other aspects of society. And no, this is not just an American issue - it can be seen worldwide; in the London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, the Westway Road cuts through the heart of its lower income and more ethnically diverse neighbourhoods of Ladbroke Grove and Westbourne Park, whilst the Southern affluent areas of Kensington and Chelsea are decorated in green spaces and have significantly lower levels of pollution.

The act of disrupting these urban areas in order to pursue a car centric culture was one which reinforced urban racial hierarchy - white suburban neighbourhoods were away from the pollution of big highway constructions and intersections, whilst inner-city black and brown communities faced the consequences of having their neighbourhoods reshaped for the worse.

One example of this is the ‘Asthma Alley’ in Mott Haven, The Bronx, New York City. This low income area in New York City, which has an overwhelmingly Black and Latino population of over 90%, is wedged between multiple highways, and the neighbourhood is often used as a shortcut for large vehicles between said highways. ‘Asthma Alley’ was the name given to Mott Haven due to it having some of the highest air pollution levels in the US - with residents needing asthma hospitalisations 5x more than the national average.

As of today, the I-81 highway is actually deteriorating, and many activists are using this to their advantage to take action in undoing the inequality created by the highway, by trying to get it removed.

However, for a country so car-centric as the US it is important to criticise what the effects of building a society which offers little alternative to driving are, and the way that certain groups within a country get consistently neglected by environmental equality.