Transportation, Homeland Security and Your Streets

I have been a stupid AQuestion. Recently, a transportation funding bill called MAP-21 put all major local roads within the National Highway System. I originally saw this as simply the nationalization of local right of ways; but, it has another effect and I just read about it.

Homeland Security - Transportation Security Overview

This change puts all major roads in cities and counties under Homeland Security. This law allows Homeland Security to track, manage and control local roads for national security. The Federal government cannot just shut down local roads because the easements are not theirs and they were not considered part of interstate commerce (which is one way in which highways are different). This is an incredible change and so few people will understand what it means.

The Federal government has not had authority to shut down locally owned streets because they were considered a local affair not effecting interstate commerce. By including them in the national highway system, they now are.

Welp, that clears up the legal issue with violation of states rights.

"See? It says right here we have the right to violate your rights."

Okay it could be some evil government movement but is it possible that it is a way of restructuring and redistributing some federal funds for needed repairs?

The infrastructure in the U.S. is sorely outdated and in need of a major overhaul. Just saying....

reply to post by intrptr


Dear intrptr,

Worse than that, it violates local rights, cities and counties. The states sold out the state highways systems a long time ago. States buy the property when they build a highway and they do it with federal funding, cities and counties do not "buy" or even own the streets, they have an easement called a public right of way. Because of this, the cities and counties have to let people ride the streets without any charges (no city toll roads). If a city or county does not ensure the free public use of streets then the easement is lost and the road returns to the adjacent property owners. The roads within gated communities do not give public easements and the people in gated communities are therefore responsible for their roads and repairing roads is expensive.

reply to post by AQuestion

Oh, I agree. I've seen it.

I think they generally call it Eminent Domination. Anything goes...

Originally posted by billy565

Okay it could be some evil government movement but is it possible that it is a way of restructuring and redistributing some federal funds for needed repairs?

The infrastructure in the U.S. is sorely outdated and in need of a major overhaul. Just saying....

Dear billy565,

Who said "evil government"? As for funding, the FHWA has been funding arterial roads for decades and the streets did not need to be part of the national highway system to receive funding.

Originally posted by intrptr
reply to post by AQuestion

 

Oh, I agree. I've seen it.

I think they generally call it Eminent Domination. Anything goes...

Dear intrptr,

Just to be clear. Eminent Domain is where the state, city or county takes your property and pays you for the title. The Federal government does not exercise eminent domain, they cannot force you to sell your property to them, only the states and local governments can. States use eminent domain to build state highways, local governments use zoning and building and safety requirements to convince developers to give them right of ways, there is no cost to the city or county.

That means no chance to bug out. That means something big is expected. That means we will go thru a selection process.

reply to post by AQuestion

Thanks for the definition. Are you sure about states vs fed? I thought "State" meant either.

Eminent Domain
I could be wrong. My play on words was more to the tune of they take. They have eroded our rights gradually, to the point now they don't even ask any more they just pass laws and take a little more. Always with the excuse they are "protecting us".

The federal government can control anything, even roads, in a time of national emergency. In peacetime they can get control by withholding funding to States.

Also, many people seem to think that the federal government is this totally evil entity while state and local governments are the people on our side fighting for our rights.

Truth be told, state and local governments are every bit as corrupt, if not more so, than the federal government is.

Try bribing or coercing a congressman as opposed to somebody in state or local government and you will see which one will get results faster.

Whether states or the federal government has control of roads is about the most irrelevant argument anyone could ever bring up.

reply to post by intrptr


Dear intrptr,

Well, with the move on roads and waterways that we have seen, they don't even have to pay anymore; however, historically, the fed could not just take land from the states. They bought national parks. Now, the western United States may be slightly different as the US paid Russia for Alaska. Hawaii was just stolen. In either case, They have not paid the cities and counties for the local roads.

Originally posted by Hopechest
The federal government can control anything, even roads, in a time of national emergency. In peacetime they can get control by withholding funding to States.

Also, many people seem to think that the federal government is this totally evil entity while state and local governments are the people on our side fighting for our rights.

Truth be told, state and local governments are every bit as corrupt, if not more so, than the federal government is.

Try bribing or coercing a congressman as opposed to somebody in state or local government and you will see which one will get results faster.

Whether states or the federal government has control of roads is about the most irrelevant argument anyone could ever bring up.

Dear Hopechest,

This is not about corruption, this is about control. Did you bother doing any research on MAP-21? Did you bother learning about local right of ways, there is plenty online. To say that it doesn't matter which part of government controls which aspect of your life is simply ignorant. You have a lot more control and impact on your local politicians than on the president. The United States constitution is about separation of powers so that no one entity can control everything, that was it's biggest issue. What we are seeing is the nationalization of everything, that is dangerous.

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