One-Way Streets Were Meant to Speed Traffic, But Now Cities Are Scrambling to Undo the Damage

For decades, one-way streets were installed in cities like Indianapolis with a singular goal: move cars quickly through downtown corridors. Michigan and New York streets, once two-way lanes, became unidirectional routes back in the 1970s to speed thousands of workers to the RCA electronics plant. Yet after the plant closed in 1995, these "racetracks" became magnets for reckless driving, endangering pedestrians and fragmenting neighborhoods. But why did cities prioritize speeding cars over the safety and vitality of their own communities? The answer lies in misguided urban planning that sacrificed national sovereignty at our own doorstep—prioritizing suburban sprawl and rapid vehicle...