In addition to a new second span of the Peace Bridge, the proposed private Ambassador-Niagara Bridge also needs to be built alongside the International Railroad Bridge. This needs to be for both non-commercial vehicles and trucks, while the Peace Bridge should then become restricted to non-commercial vehicles only.

The second span and expanded US plaza of the Peace Bridge should be built across from the northwestern ends of Busti Avenue and Seventh Street, so that the majority of the Front Park neighborhood homes can be sold by the Public Bridge Authority and then restored. Meanwhile, the way to the Ambassador-Niagara and its US plaza could be made by rerouting the Scajaquada Expressway (Route 198) between Grant Street and the railroad between Dearborn and Parish Streets. Currently, part of Route 198 between Grant Street and the intersection with Humboldt Parkway and Agassiz Circle is supposed to be converted into a slower parkway. This should become reality and the highway should also become a parkway west of Grant with trucks prohibited east of the Niagara Thruway as well.

As for the idea of covering part of the Kensington-King Expressway (Route 33) on the East Side, it would be nice if this highway were, in fact, either covered or gone so the highway south of the Scajaquada split as well as the portion of the Scajaquada Expressway between the split and Agassiz Circle and Humboldt Parkway can be restored and reconnected in its entirety. The Olmsted greenbelt between Delaware and Martin Luther King, Jr. parks would be restored, instead of changing Fillmore Avenue to be an “Olmstead-Humboldt makeup.” Humboldt Parkway could also be extended southwest to Virginia and Cherry Streets as well as Galveston Place and BFNC Drive. The separated sections of Carlton, Johnson, and Sherman Streets could also be reconnected. As well, Cayuga and Carlton Streets could be connected to each other, as could West Parade Avenue to Dodge and Northampton streets.

The Niagara Thruway (Interstate 190) between Interstate 290 and the Inner Harbor should also be covered, or done away with, putting the traffic on Niagara Street and River Road. This would allow all of the historical canals and slips of such area to be restored, as well as the Erie Canal between there and Tonawanda. The new Peace and Ambassador-Niagara Bridges and their US plazas should be built with minimal destruction to the surrounding areas.

Kevin F. Yost
Henrietta

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