A classic example of the notorious ‘stroad,’ aging state roads that aim to serve all users with piecemeal infrastructure solutions fail to facilitate safe, efficient transportation.

In a memorandum released in late July, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) highlighted the fact that states can take advantage of dozens of federal programs to improve “legacy” or “orphan” highways, reports Jeff Wood in Streetsblog USA.
These roads, built early in a city’s development, have been adjusted and augmented, often haphazardly, to meet the needs of increased traffic and new types of mobility. “That Frankenstein of a human-centered street and a car-centered, highway-style road is often referred to as a ‘stroad’ — and state highway agencies aren't big fans of them either, since all those pesky pedestrians and stoplights make legacy highways highly inefficient at moving cars.” In Washington state, for example, “the crash fatality rate on legacy highways is than three times higher than the rest of the roadway system.”
According to Wood, “states can already leverage 27 different federal programs in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to transform these roads with traffic calming measures, wider sidewalks, bike lanes and more. Twelve of those programs are ‘formula’ grants, which means a certain amount of money is guaranteed to each state based on a DOT calculation, and states don't even need to compete for the funds.”
FULL STORY: ‘Legacy Highways’ Are Some of Our Most-Dangerous Stroads — And It’s Time to Fix Them, US DOT Says

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

Crime Continues to Drop on Philly, San Francisco Transit Systems
SEPTA and BART both saw significant declines in violent crime in the first quarter of 2025.

How South LA Green Spaces Power Community Health and Hope
Green spaces like South L.A. Wetlands Park are helping South Los Angeles residents promote healthy lifestyles, build community, and advocate for improvements that reflect local needs in historically underserved neighborhoods.

Sacramento Plans ‘Quick-Build’ Road Safety Projects
The city wants to accelerate small-scale safety improvements that use low-cost equipment to make an impact at dangerous intersections.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Ada County Highway District
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service