🚀 go-pugleaf

Loren Petrich wrote:

> In article <3B181692.6390FB18@reproman.com>, jon winston
> <jon@reproman.com> wrote:
>
> > The median price of a home in San Francisco is now well over $400,000.
> > That's why (aside from near unanimous opposition) there will never ever
> > be a new freeway project there or anywhere in the Bay Area.
>
> > The cost of a right of way for any new project would be prohibitive and
> > renders this whole debate moot.
>
>    What a bunch of Kulaks! :-)
>
>    Although I consider Dave Simpson's and Dan Hagstrom's positions to
> be pure emotionalism ("Anyone who does not allow me to drive wherever I
> want is a traitorous Kulak!!!"), I do point out that there is a way to
> build more freeways without using up surface real estate.
>
>    Build the freeways underground, as has been proposed for SF. Some
> possibilities:
>
> * Downtown SF to the Golden Gate Bridge area. This tunnel can go
> through solid rock because there is a big hill in between, making for
> easy and non-disruptive tunneling.
>
> * A freeway underneath Sunset Blvd. It would have a few exchanges, but
> not many. It could be constructed in cut-and-cover fashion, creating a
> double-decker road.
>
> * Van Ness Ave. could have a tunnel underneath it that connects Market
> St. and the waterfront area.
>
>    This undergrounding is what is being done for Boston in its Central
> Artery "Big Dig" project, and I suspect that SF will have an easier
> time of it than Boston has.

I disagree that 'SF would have an easier time of it than Boston has.'
The terrain for tunneling is very similar (either bedrock or very soft
landfill, aka 'liquifaction zones'); Boston's cost is up 75%, and that
would make the bean counters wary of similar black holes; and
construction dollars in general from both Washington and Sacramento
are drying up.

Don't get me wrong. I think that it would be wonderful if it happened.
But they are going to say we just rebuilt this bridge and tore down
that highway and besides there are nothing but Democrats in office
there so why should we pay for this latest boondoggle.  File this
under wishful thinking.