The sprawling patterns of land development common to metropolitan areas of the US have been blamed for high levels of automobile travel, and thus for air quality problems. In response, smart growth programs— designed to counter sprawl—have gained popularity in the US. Studies show...

I recently moved from Berkeley to Austin, the "Berkeley of Texas." Although there are similarities, and Austin is certainly as close to Berkeley as Texas gets, there are plenty of things I miss about Berkeley. I miss the hills and the bay. I miss good Chinese food and Thai food, Super Burritos,...

In this issue of ACCESS, we examine how land use considerations can improve transportation planning. Transportation planners have traditionally sought to maximize mobility by supplying better roads and common carriers, thus making it easier to move around. Seldom have they sought to improve the...

This paper explores how the automobile has indirectly led to dramatic changes in patterns of accessibility to retail and service activity within metropolitan regions. The automobile instigated a greater articulation of the hierarchy of transportation facilities, as reflected in a greater...

The question of how alternative forms of development affect travel patterns has recently been the focus of a heated debate, much of which centers on the effects of suburbanization in particular. The concept of accessibility provides an important tool for resolving this question. By measuring...

Auto ownership is a critical mediating link in the connection between the built environment and travel behavior: the built environment presumably influences auto ownership, which in turn impacts travel behavior. However, the way in which individual elements of the built environment affect...