The automobile's dominance won't go unchallenged, however. Transit proponents will attempt to match the car's flexibility with a wider range of public transportation options, Weicher and other experts said. Also, government officials from Vice President Al Gore to New Jersey Gov. Christie Whitman speak increasingly of the link between land use patterns and transportation. More emphasis on urban development models, they contend, translates into less need for automobiles. It's offering people choices.
People can walk more and bike more and use public transit more.
Roger King of the Intelligent Transportation Society says other new technologies are already in limited production. Such innovations are expected to do little to cure traffic congestion. And because of their sheer numbers, trucks and automobiles will continue to pose problems for state governments struggling to meet federal clean air requirements. Hope to alleviate the highway crunch is pegged on so-called intelligent technologies, which keep tabs on traffic patterns and help steer commuters around jams. These systems began in the 1980's as simple signs warning motorists of possible traffic jams ahead.