Every WORST Designed Highway in America Explained

Why did America build highways straight through its own neighborhoods? Which highways destroyed the most homes, and are any of them actually coming down? This video answers all of that. As a real urban planner, i'm breaking down the worst highways in America, from the Cross Bronx Expressway to the one interstate that finally got torn down for good. #urbanplanning #highway #explained Cross Bronx Expressway: Displaced tens of thousands of people and still gives nearby residents four times the asthma rate. I-10 New Orleans: Buried a historic Black business district under an elevated highway and left it a fraction of what it was. I-81 Viaduct: The rare case where the state actually tore the highway down instead of just talking about it. NY-33 Buffalo: Erased an Olmsted-designed boulevard and replaced it with a six lane highway that's still running 60 years later. I-10 Houston: Texas spent 2.8 billion dollars widening it and ended up with worse traffic than before. I-980 Oakland: A freeway built for a bridge that was never built, running at half its capacity ever since. I-75/85 Atlanta: A federal grant to reconnect the city got clawed back overnight, and Atlanta is paying for it anyway. I-375 Detroit: A mile long highway that erased an entire neighborhood, replaced by a plan residents are calling a highway in costume. The Proof: Cities that actually removed highways found the predicted traffic meltdown almost never happened. Harbor Drive: Portland became the first American city to remove a freeway on purpose and gained a park instead of gridlock. Should any of these highways actually come down? Let me know in the comments! 𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗖𝗞 𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗢𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥 𝗣𝗢𝗣𝗨𝗟𝗔𝗥 𝗩𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗢𝗦; How Cities, Streets & Transportation Actually Work ↪ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLO5PaPVyUlAm3fivbm18stRE09lUVz1yJ Every Reason American Cities Are DESIGNED to Bankrupt You Explained in 9 Minutes ↪ https://youtu.be/-il-EdpiK8E Every FAILED Public Transport System Explained in 9 Minutes ↪ https://youtu.be/zmFrwjBq_Bw -TIMESTAMPS- 00:00 Cross Bronx Expressway 00:59 I-10 New Orleans 01:57 I-81 Viaduct 02:50 NY-33 Buffalo 03:49 I-10 Houston 04:41 I-980 Oakland 05:34 I-75/85 Atlanta 06:30 I-375 Detroit 07:28 The Proof 08:42 Harbor Drive 09:30 The End If you'd like to support this channel and its mission to make urban planning knowledge accessible for everyone, you can join our "Planning Office" via the 'Join' button! 🤝 You can also offer one-time support using the 'Super Thanks' feature below the video and be featured on the 'Thank You Board' at the end of the video, just like all our supporters. 🙏 📩 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁 (𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀): [email protected] **** Welcome to Urban Planner Explained! I'm Umut, an urban planner currently pursuing my Master's degree. I'm passionate about decoding the complex world of cities, and I'm here to break down everything I've learned—from university lectures to my travels—into clear videos. My goal is to make the often technical subject of urban planning engaging and easy to understand for everyone. On this channel, we explain various topics like city models, principles of urbanism, some insanely-well designed cities, and American suburbs in a simple and clear way. Of course, topics like Megacity projects, future city models, street patterns, smart cities, walkability, urban design, zoning, public transportation and urban planners are also in our area of interest. If you want to better understand your environment, join a conscious conversation about cities, and explore these living organisms with me, you're in the right place. Subscribe to join the community and let's meet in the next video! © 2026 Urban Planner Explained