The Brian Lehrer Show Fixing the Hated Cross Bronx Expressway
Mar 10, 2026
Siddhartha Sánchez, executive director of the Bronx River Alliance who works to restore the Bronx River and bring community-focused park planning, talks about the Cross Bronx Expressway’s harms. They challenge state plans to widen the highway. They describe daily pollution and health impacts, question safety claims for expansion, and propose community-centered alternatives and park-focused solutions.
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Highway Is Vital Yet Health-Damaging
- The Cross Bronx Expressway is both essential infrastructure and a long-standing source of harm, carrying about 150,000 vehicles daily while contributing to the Bronx's high asthma hospitalization rates.
- Its construction displaced thousands and placed traffic and pollution next to dense housing like Bronx River Houses, creating a persistent public-health crisis noted by Siddhartha Sánchez and CP.
Resident Calls It The Parking Lot
- CP describes living adjacent to the highway and calls it "the parking lot" because it's almost always backed up, with traffic spilling into residential streets.
- She recounts family members across generations with asthma and long experience organizing with Mothers on the Move against highway impacts.
Shoulders Are A Policy Choice With Big Tradeoffs
- The state's plan widens the highway footprint by up to 50 feet to add discretionary shoulders, which the coalition argues is unnecessary policy rather than an absolute safety requirement.
- Siddhartha Sánchez warns the widening would push lanes closer to Bronx River Houses and cut mature tree canopy that buffers air and noise.