Hello Better World Betties (and Bobs)!
As many of you know, the US29 Western Bypass project is moving forward. But, we know that many of you have concerns about what this project may mean for the health and safety of our community. If so, try to attend the upcoming citizens’ information/public comment meeting TONIGHT, Thurs., May 23rd, 5-7:30pm to express your concerns. The meeting, hosted by VDOT, will be held at the Holiday Inn Charlottesville at 1901 Emmett St. You may come anytime during those hours as there is no formal presentation, just an open-house opportunity to review the design and speak with VDOT representatives. Here is a link to information about the meeting. If you feel so called, please press VDOT on the additional cost to taxpayers of modifying the existing design to address the inherent health and safety issues.
A bit of information on the expected health and safety issues associated with the US29 Western Bypass:
The proposed US29 Western Bypass, as designed, is expected cause negative health impacts at six area schools that far outweigh the expected benefit of saving drivers a few minutes of time. The project also provides an extremely poor return on investment for Virginia tax dollars.
A recent study “examined children’s health in 10 cities [and] concluded that 14% of chronic childhood asthma cases could be attributed to near-road traffic pollution. It is the first time that medical researchers have made such a direct link —previous studies stopped at saying that traffic pollution is known to trigger asthma, not cause it.” [LA Times 3/21/13: http://www.latimes.com/news/
Not only is air pollution bad for our environment, but it is bad for our own health as well. If you are worried about the increased air pollution near area schools that will result from the US29 Western Bypass, please consider attending tonight’s meeting and making your concerns heard.
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