Supporting Sustainable Transportation

Abstract

Transportation—the movement of people and goods—is the lifeblood of a city. Inadequate transport systems constrain a city’s economy and vitality. But making a city too dependent on motorized transport can cause a host of other problems: traffic jams and deadly accidents, debilitating air pollution, and the loss of valuable land to streets, highways, and parking lots. Car- and truck­centered transportation systems run the risk of becoming like clogged arteries: they are bad not only for the vitality and attractiveness of cities, but also for urban residents’ health, local environmental quality, and the global climate.