Urbanization

Key Issue #4: Why do suburbs have distinctive problems?

Appeal of the Suburbs

• Detached, single family dwelling, private land, space to park cars, and more privacy

Edge Cities

• Edge cities – nodes of consumer and business services around the beltway

• Originated as residential areas, then malls were built, office parks were attracted

• Specialized nodes may appear in edge cities (airport, theme park, etc…)

Density Gradient

• As you travel outward from the center of a city, you watch the density decline, this is called density gradient

• Two changes have affected the density gradient in recent years:

1. The number of people living in the center has decreased

2. The trend towards less density difference within urban areas

• In Europe, low-income high-rise apartments in the suburbs has also affected the density gradient

Cost of Suburban Sprawl

• Sprawl = the progressive spread of development over the landscape

• As long as demand for detached single family homes is high, sprawl will remain

• Sprawl can be inefficient

Suburban Segregation

• Modern U.S. suburbs are segregated in two ways

1. Residents are separated from commercial and manufacturing activities

2. Housing in a given community is usually built for a single social class, with others excluded by virtue of cost, size, or location of the housing

– Zoning ordinances – encourage segregation

Motor Vehicles

• Suburban explosion in the 20th century has depended on motor vehicles

• Motor vehicle ownership is nearly universal in America with the exception of some poor families, older individuals, and people living in large cities like NYC

• An average city allocates about ¼ of its city to roads and parking lots

Rush-Hour Commuting

• As much as 40% of all trips made into or out of a CBD occur during four hours of the day – 2 in the morning, 2 in the evening

• Rush hour• In larger cities…• But people prefer…

New Rapid Transit Lines

• The one exception to the downward trend in public transportation

• Fixed heavy rail – subways

• Fixed light rail – streetcars

• Many cities are seeing an increase in the use of rapid transit systems (Chicago, Boston, etc…)

Service Versus Cost

• Many public transportation systems are caught in a cycle; the fares do not match revenue

• Low-income people need to use public transportation; as jobs are taken outside the city to the suburbs, they are not able to use public transit because the transit may not reach the suburbs

Public Transit in Other Countries

• In more developed countries where car ownership is high, networks of tram, bus and subway have been maintained

Tokyo

Federations

• Toronto and Ontario have a federation system

• Region’s six local governments are responsible for police, fire, and tax collection services

• A regional government, Metropolitan Council (Metro), sets the tax rate for the region as a whole

Consolidations

• Several U.S. urban governments have consolidated

• Indianapolis and Miami are examples

• Both have consolidated city and county governments

Growing Smart

• Taking steps to curb sprawl, reduce traffic congestion, and reverse inner city decline

• The goal = produce a pattern of compact and contiguous development while protecting land for agriculture, recreation, and wildlife

• Legislation to limit sprawl and preserve farmland is called smart growth