The Ohio Department of Transportation is nearing completion of a 24-month planning process for the biggest and most expensive road repair project in our region’s history. Consultants are evaluating a T-shaped corridor from the interchange of I-71 and Ohio 176 (Jennings Freeway), north through downtown Cleveland to the I-90/Shoreway split, as well as the Shoreway between Edgewater and Gordon parks.

More than $1 billion could be spent on this project, yet many questions remain about the impact of this investment on the long-term health of the city. For example:

• Will plans to smooth out traffic flows on the Innerbelt make the city more livable and more economically competitive, or will they simply ease traffic away from downtown?
• Will the urban scars created years ago when the highways slashed through the city be healed and capped over with new parks and development sites (i.e. High Street's cap over I-670 in Columbus)?
• With creative engineering, can the old Central Viaduct Bridge be replaced by a single signature bridge that doesn't negatively impact Tremont?
• How does the $1 billion investment in road work relate to the city's larger goals for increased housing opportunities downtown and in surrounding neighborhoods?

Updates

Read EcoCity Cleveland's letter to ODOT Re: Draft Environmental Study, Cleveland Innerbelt (2-28-07) 

Cleveland City Council weighs costs and benefits of Innerbelt Project (1-10-07)