Frank Douma, Camila Fonseca-Sarmiento, Robin Phinney, and Jerry Zhao have completed their report, “Mitigating Community Harms of Dense Highway Infrastructure - Spaghetti Junctions,” which analyzes strategies implemented across the U.S. to mitigate the adverse effects of dense highway infrastructure. 

These dense highways, or spaghetti junctions, have improved connectivity and economic growth, but have also had documented negative impacts on surrounding communities, according to the report. The researchers looked at local- and state-led initiatives to offer insights to inform similar efforts in Minnesota.

Findings concluded that the most successful solutions were tied to relationship building, genuine community engagement, and collaborating with other sectors such as housing and parks.