Residents near BOTA allege road project violates civil rights legislation
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Homeowners and residents in South-Central El Paso who live next to TxDOT’s I-10 Connect Project (also known as I-110) have filed a complaint with the Federal Highway Administration alleging that the project violates federal civil rights legislation.
Homeowners in the San Xavier neighborhood are asking the federal government to “take action and remedy mistakes made by TxDOT,” according to a news release sent out announcing the complaint.
A news conference was also scheduled for 3 p.m. Monday, Dec. 18.
“When TxDOT was planning this project, the community told TxDOT that we were concerned about the 18-wheelers, air pollution, traffic and noise. TxDOT promised us that I-10 Connect would make the traffic flow faster. Anyone who has seen the congestion on the exit to Juarez knows that was a lie. It is a safety issue and a nuisance to everyone who uses that part of our highway. But for us who live next to it and for the children who go to Zavala Elementary, it is also a health hazard and an injustice. No one is benefiting. We need the federal government to step in,” said Ricardo Leon, resident of the San Xavier Community
Neighborhood residents are asking for the removal of 18-wheelers from I-10 Connect, among other remedies. They “complain about an increase in noise, vibrations, and health issues related to the I-10 Connect Project due to TxDOT failing to do proper traffic studies during the planning phases,” according to the news release.
Residents of this area are also asking for homeowners who sustained damage from the project to be compensated financially, that the neighborhood’s infrastructure be repaired, that TxDOT adopt and enforce “written construction rules” which will prevent future harm and that a comprehensive health study and monitoring of residents close to I-10 Connect be done, according to a copy of the complaint filed with the Federal Highway Administration.
“TxDOT falsely claimed its $156 million I-10 Connect Project would alleviate traffic heading into the Bridge of the Americas port of entry,” the complaint read. “As every El Pasoan now knows, TxDOT failed to deliver on its promise. Instead, TxDOT has perpetuated the discriminatory policies that have impacted Mexican-American communities since the days of Jim Crow America, under which white supremacist ideology was applied to decide which communities would bear the burden of transportation projects.
“The San Xavier neighborhood continues to suffer from this racist legacy and its most recent continuance through the failed I-10 Connect Project, with air pollution, traffic, health impacts, the heat island effect, noise pollution and damage from the project itself,” the complaint reads.
TxDOT issued the following statement:
“The I-10 Connect project was designed to create direct connections between I-10 and Loop 375 in a mid-town location to increase mobility, and to amplify the benefits of the Loop 375 Border West Expressway as an alternate route to I-10. Prior to its construction the only direct connections between I-10 and Loop 375 were at Transmountain, Sunland Park, and the far East Side at the Americas interchange. The project was environmentally cleared through the Federal Highway Administration’s NEPA (National Environmental Protection Act) process.
The Bridge of the Americas is a federally owned and operated bridge. It is the only free bridge in the city.” – Jennifer Wright, TxDOT spokesperson
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