Pinavia interchange

Alternative plan for I-70

Tear down the freeway and put a tree-lined parkway there instead.

I-70 in Denver

Crazy Intersection

Dupont Circle

Dupont Circle in Washington has 10 streets that intersect. This was part of L'Enfant's original design, although then it was called Pacific Circle. "The neighborhood is centered around the traffic circle, which is divided between two counterclockwise roads. The outer road serves all the intersecting streets, while access to the inner road is limited to through traffic on Massachusetts Avenue. Connecticut Avenue passes under the circle via a tunnel; vehicles on Connecticut Avenue can access the circle via service roads that branch from Connecticut near N Street and R Street.  The park within the circle is a gathering place for those wishing to play chess on the permanent stone chessboards."

Brilliant!

"2pi" intersection

A "2pi" intersection is similar to a Continuous Flow Intersection. The left-hand traffic crosses over ahead of the signal.

Superstreets

"A "superstreet" is a roadway where the signalized intersections have been modified to eliminate left turns and straight-through traffic on the cross street. Doing this reduces the number of traffic signal phases required to move traffic through the intersection thereby allowing for longer green times on the major roadway and thus reducing congestion caused by the signals."

They are a little complicated but are much cheaper than overpasses, and allow much more traffic than regular intersections.

Los Alamitos Traffic Circle

This is one of the largest, busiest roundabouts in the US, handling 60,000 cars per day in Long Beach.  The inner island is about 360 feet in diameter.  Four major roads meet here.  Another 2 streets stop at the outer circle.

Bering Strait Tunnel

"This year’s extent of Arctic sea ice could be the second smallest ever, making the Northwest Passage and Northern Sea Route ever more navigable.  But in and around the Bering Strait, the amount of ice wouldn’t matter if the plans to build an underwater tunnel between Russia and Alaska are realized. Though the idea was initially floated by  Tsar Nicholas II in 1905, it was scrapped by the Soviets and then again by the economic meltdown of the 1990s following the Soviet collapse. Vladimir Putin reignited Russian interest in the project and raised the issue with former president George W. Bush in 2008. Now, the Daily Mail reports that the Duma has just approved the plans to build the 64-mile tunnel and rail link, which could cost anywhere from $60-100 billion to construct. Reports are conflicting, but the tunnel will include a high-speed rail for cargo trains and possibly a road, fiber optic cable connections, and energy links."
--http://foreignpolicyblogs.com/2011/08/28/russia-seeks-to-build-64-mile-tunnel-across-the-bering-strait-to-alaska/%20

Elevated runway in Fort Lauderdale

"The new runway, expected to be operational by September 2014, will stretch 8,000 feet parallel to Griffin Road. But here’s what makes it really interesting: It will also be elevated 60 feet off the ground, in order for trains and trucks to comfortably pass in tunnels underneath."

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/23/2604194/work-on-new-fort-lauderdale-airport.html

Baluarte Bridge

The Baluarte Bridge in Mexico was inaugurated on Januar 5, 2012. It is the world's tallest at 1322 feet above the ravine below.

Parallel Flow Intersection

This is a variation of the Continuous Flow Intersection.

Continuous Flow Intersection

Cool freeway animation

The amazing new Hoover Dam Bridge

The concrete span is 1060 feet across and is 890 feet above the Colorado River.  The Mike O'Callaghan – Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge opened on October 19, 2010.

Thorium-powered cars

Thorium, a silvery-white metal, is a mildly radioactive element (with an atomic weight of 90) that is as abundant as lead. It is present in large quantities in India and is a much-touted stand in for uranium in nuclear reactors because its fission is not self-sustaining, a type of reaction called “sub-critical.”

The idea has energized the small but active thorium community, which holds that it is the answer to our clean energy needs because it could, effectively, power a car forever. The new technology “would be totally emissions-free,” Stevens said, “with no need for recharging.”

--http://www.txchnologist.com/2011/the-thorium-laser-the-completely-plausible-idea-for-nuclear-cars%20