Very Bad News for Bagby Posted on | June 20, 2012 | 23 Comments We’ve been away for a while (we have an excuse), but we just received a tip about the Bagby Street reconstruction that is NOT cool at all and brought us running to you. Apparently, the project (already 100 days into construction) with city-approved plans that have been vetted by members of the community, is coming to a halt in a couple days. Yes, construction (and all work on Bagby) is about to stop (and remain in its current state). Why? Because the city’s Public Works Department wants three lanes of traffic on Bagby. So why does the city’s Public Works department want to stop the project and change plans just to add another lane of traffic (even though Midtown had traffic studies conducted that said only two lanes are needed… and that the community wants Bagby to be more pedestrian friendly)? Apparently, Public Works wants Bagby to be a pass-through street where cars can fly through Midtown. Screw pedestrians. Screw the patios along Bagby that are planned for the upcoming restaurants. Screw the fact that Midtown is going to lose tons of money from this decision. Screw the plans that have already been approved. Screw the Green Roads designation. Screw the water features and gardens planned. Screw the bulb-outs to help people cross the street. Screw it all. Tear it all out. Our only hope is that our Mayor and Council Members (that tout pedestrian-friendly, green living, and vibrant urban city centers) hear about this… and what you think about it. If they truly care about the environment and pedestrians like they say, they’ll get to the bottom of why Public Works wants to screw Midtown. http://innerlooped.com/1840/very-bad-news-for-bagby/
It moves pretty fast with 2 lanes. I think after McGowen it is 3 lanes actually. They is basically a middle finger to Midtown because it directly affects the vibrant area of bagby, between gray and mcgowen.
What does that have to do with it? It wasn't what the people wanted or was approved. If they turned Westheimer into a highway it would also make a great pass through and relieve some east-west traffic..
A lot of streets would make goo pass-throughs. But that doesn't mean you go against everything the area has been built up to be to do it. This is utter nonsense.
