The Road to Prosperity: Real-Time Approaches to Economic Improvement

People have been driving about 1% less per year for the last 9 years. What can public-private partnerships for transportation alternatives do to stoke this fire?

1 minute read

January 26, 2014, 11:00 AM PST

By Hazel Borys


"Across America, too many people believe that 'no one will get out of their cars.' The newest data based on the American Community Survey, shows 'it ain’t so,' even for small cities and their surrounding areas. The national trend in the US is a drop of almost 1 percent per year in passenger vehicle-miles-traveled or VMT, driven by the high price of transportation generally and more specifically related to the need to drive, a function of the increased distance between people and what they do. People have been driving about 1% per year less for a while now."

Scott Bernstein, President of the Center for Neighborhood Technology, goes on to use Doña Ana County, New Mexico, as an example of the road to prosperity. Warning, this long thought piece is not an easy read, but sets out to invoke some heavy lifting for transportation types and PPPs.

2013 saw the 9th consecutive year of a drop in total vehicle miles traveled per household

Monday, January 20, 2014 in PlaceShakers

"Planetizen federal action tracker" logo superimposed over black and white image of US Capitol dome.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

November 11, 2026 - Zachary Whalen

A road in north eastern Nebraska with power lines on either side, and grassy fields.

Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity

Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.

November 6, 2026 - Grist

People walking in downtown St. Louis, walking past shops.

Move over, LA: St. Louis gears up for Olympics, invests millions in downtown redevelopment

The Missouri city will host the 2028 Olympic soccer group stage and knockout matches.

November 1, 2026 - Smart Cities Dive

Construction in Dallas. An aerial shot of a wooden frame of an apartment building.

Dallas releases zoning code overhaul to officials

The drafted overhaul is over 400 pages long.

4 hours ago - Dallas Morning News

Canal street, where pedestrians are packed shoulder to shoulder.

NYC renovations for dangerous, ‘mercilessly crammed’ street delayed until 2027

Construction was supposed to begin this fall.

5 hours ago - Gothamist

A rendering of Midway Rising that shows people mingling in a green space between apartment buildings.

San Diego’s Midway Rising project gets greenlight from city council

The project looks to become the largest affordable housing development in California's history.

6 hours ago - KPBS

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.