TRB Report Evaluates Densification & VMT Reduction

"...acting under a congressional mandate, the Transportation Research Board recently completed a study that has now resulted in a very large report: "Driving and the Built Environment: The Effects of Compact Development on Motorized Travel, Energy Use, and CO Emissions" is actually five mini-papers at nearly 200 pages long."

"The literature suggests that doubling residential density across a metropolitan area might lower household VMT by about 5 to 12 percent, and perhaps by as much as 25 percent, if coupled with (other measures)."

The report hones in on the need for new and replacement housing resulting from population growth, 57 million by 2030 alone. Housing stock in 2000 is measured at 105.2 million.

From Press Release:
"Compact, mixed-use development -- individuals living in denser environments with jobs and shopping close by -- could reduce the number of vehicle miles traveled by shortening trip lengths, the report says, and by making walking, biking, and public transit more viable alternatives to driving."