Planning Transportation Planning Community Revitalization Questions Resources Victory ClubBeat Volunteers Search for an Article Free Subscription Back Issues Transportation Planning Getting people from place to place in sprawl-choked communities is costing us dearly. Once the concern of a few big cities, massive traffic jams have become commonplace across the country. And all that driving means more air pollution. Cars and trucks are among the largest sources of smog and cancer-causing pollution in America, spewing out 12 pounds of cancer chemicals annually for every person in America. States that are doing the best job challenging sprawl are the ones that recognize the connections between sprawl and transportation.
Sprawl spreads out everything, making trips longer and driving mandatory.
Studies show that residents of sprawling communities drive three to four times as much as those living in better-planned communities. Adding new lanes and building new roads just makes the problem worse. New highways are the number one cause of sprawl, according to American Farmland Trust. Build them, and the traffic will come. They may give short-term relief, but long term they just encourage more sprawl.