It may be a long shot, but George Scott's idea is getting a little traction.

Readers of this column will recall that Scott is the amateur urban planner who thinks the temporary shutdown of the Henley Bridge is a perfect opportunity to permanently transform Henley Street itself.

In recent months, Scott has been shopping a Power Point presentation that calls for making the new detour - I-40 onto the James White Parkway, down to Moody Avenue and over to Chapman Highway - into the official route for U.S. 441. The portion of Henley through downtown could then be changed into a pedestrian-friendly street with fewer lanes and less traffic, making it a less imposing barrier between UT and downtown.

(You can watch a video version of the proposal by typing "George Scott Henley Street" into the search bar on http://www.youtube.com.)

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