[sustran] FWD:Europe: Commuting Faster in Suburbs than Cities

Daryl Oster et3 at et3.com
Sun Oct 1 01:33:14 JST 2006


Subject: Europe: Commuting Faster in Suburbs than Cities

Commentary:
http://www.fromtheheartland.org/blog/2006/09/europe_commuting_faster_in_sub.
php#more
Data:http://www.publicpurpose.com/ut-eu15-jtwtime2001.htm
 
Europe: Commuting Faster in Suburbs than Cities

There are few public policy issues more driven my myth than land use and the
currently fashionable strategies of "smart growth" or "urban consolidation."
Virtually all of the arguments made in support of smart growth's
densification and land restriction policies melt away when subjected to the
light of scrutiny. <http://www.demographia.com/dib-smg.htm>  Now data shows
that European work trip travel times for suburban residents are less than
those of city residents, which is the opposite of claims by smart growth
advocates. 

Further evidence of this is provided by an analysis of Western European work
trip travel times. The anti-suburban smart growth theorists often suggest
that cities should artificially constrained in their expansion because
suburban areas put people farther away from their jobs and thus force people
to spend more time traveling to work. 

Estimates based upon data from the European Union Urban Audit indicates that
commutes by suburban residents are faster than commutes by city (core)
residents <http://www.publicpurpose.com/ut-eu15-jtwtime2001.htm> . that the
average work trip travel time for suburban residents is 23 minutes, one-way.
This is five minutes less each way that the central city estimate of 28
minutes. Of course, the reasons that suburbanites can get to their jobs more
quickly are that lower densities mean less traffic congestion (contrary to
smart growth claims) and that jobs have followed people to the suburbs.
Doubtless, urban planners who are more inclined to believe their conceptions
than the data will be surprised that this improved jobs-housing balance has
occurred with little or no direction from the planning profession. 

Land use policy needs to be based upon fact, rather than the myopic
perceptions of a small urban elite. The data could not be more clear. Smart
growth --- the compact city --- means more traffic congestion, more intense
air pollution and longer travel times. This, of course, is just the
beginning. Smart growth also means significantly reduced housing
affordability <http://www.demographia.com/dhi-ix2005q3.pdf> , a
redistribution of wealth from lower and middle income households to the more
affluent and, as a result, the likelihood of future greater poverty and less
economic growth. 

-- 
Wendell Cox
Demographia | Wendell Cox Consultancy - St. Louis Missouri-Illinois
metropolitan region
Visiting Professor, Conservatoire National des Arts et Metiers, Paris
+1.618.632.8507 | +33.6.10.59.59.92
www.demographia.com | www.publicpurpose.com | www.rentalcartours.net 
"Absent a material threat to other individuals or the community, people
should be allowed to live and work where and how they like." 
-Lone Mountain Compact




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