"First rule in government spending: why build one when you can have two at twice the price?" - S.R. Hadden, Contact (1997)

What just happened? As the Mayor's slow train came to a halt in Central station, his mind was still racing. Two billion dollars - no strings attached - to keep building.

He'd better use it wisely.

...

A new day dawns, and now it's 1956. Normanhurst's population has swelled to nearly 130,000! Aggressive expansion has brought new homes to the region.

During the economic downturn, many turned to farming. There was an explosion of new farms in outer regions, but demand has outpaced supply.

But with the recession nationally all but over, big business has taken a keen interest in Normanhurst.

Congestion is however a-brewin' on the city's major thoroughfare. Named Park Road for most of its route, it's actually four distinct roads that all began separately but were linked up as Normanhurst's population has soared.

The mayor's planners can give us a tour.

The main road, at this stage called Park Road, cuts right down the middle of Normanhurst's outer industrial areas, starting at an off ramp of a local expressway. Despite being three lanes in each direction, this interchange is frequently packed with commuters and freight trucks. What a nightmare! Upgrades will be needed.

The road then continues through industrial parks...

...slipping below Chattanooga Road...

...into suburbia, where it becomes Church Street...

...then into the City, where it becomes Hayward...

...and then finally as Fort Wayne, it crossed the river to meet up with another expressway, the Normanhurst Bypass.

Its route through the city is illustrated below:

As you can probably tell, the road carries a lot of traffic. It also dissects a number of other busy thoroughfares from across the suburbs, meaning rush-hour is an absolute mad scramble. At Chatanooga Road, the intersection has had to be grade separated to keep traffic flowing, but it has only bought a little time. Further upgrades to the entire route are needed, potentially grade separating it and making it an expressway between Ringroad One and the beginning of Church Street. Town planners think widening the road even further, to the intersection of Fresno/Fontana, would require too many resumptions of neighbouring properties and would effectively split communities in half.

What do you think should happen?