High technology and the Internet will have an increasingly broad impact on the way our cities and communities deal with transportation, traffic, and mobility, according to commentator John M. Eger.
"As the Internet revolution moves into full bloom, there is every reason to believe it could have a dramatic impact on the architecture and landscape of communities throughout the world. For no technology in human history is having, or is likely to have, such tremendous influence on life and work and play, and in the transforming process, and -- if we are thoughtful -- on our physical space."
"The congestion on our roads and in major cites is now at catastrophic proportion. High occupancy lanes and toll roads are now standard practice on major freeways but a so-called "congestion charge" used in downtown London and Singapore -- with cameras used to enforce the new restrictions to limit vehicular traffic -- seems to be working."
"Yet if we are to capitalize on this dramatic shift in which telecommunications -- the Internet -- becomes a substitute for transportation, we must make some conscious decisions to change our habits. We need to renew our sense of place and rethink our attitudes and our policies toward civic life, the village green and the fundamental and historical reason for the city."
