Pass the Reconnecting Communities Act

Across multiple generations, communities of color and low-income communities have been negatively impacted by discriminatory transportation public policy decisions.[2][3] For example, decisions made over decades about the placement of highways  contributed “to the residential concentration of race and poverty and created physical, economic, and psychological barriers” as the construction displaced primarily Black households, churches, schools, and businesses.[4] The Bipartisan Reconnecting Communities Act intends to reconnect and revitalize neighborhoods divided by the construction of the Interstate Highway System, empowering communities to reverse the legacy of the construction’s harm.[5] The Biden Administration’s American Jobs Plan included $20 billion for a similar program to “reconnect neighborhoods cut off by historic investments and ensure new projects increase opportunity, advance racial equity and environmental justice, and promote affordable access.”[6]

Centuries of racism, including the construction of the Interstate Highway System, negatively impact all aspects of the Social Determinants of Health[7] (e.g., safe housing and transportation, economic stability, access to quality education, healthcare, and food, and clean air and water)[8]), all of which influence community mental health. Numerous studies have tied air pollution (including small particulate matter, nitrogen oxide and nitrogen dioxide – which are associated with vehicle exhaust) to higher levels of stress and increased risk of depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, personality disorder, and even suicide.[9]

Passing the Reconnecting Communities Act and supporting similar efforts is the first of many steps necessary to reconnect and revitalize communities through infrastructure investments.