Next Stop: 400 Million Americans

The growing U.S. population, in contrast to the stagnant populations of Europe or Japan, can be seen as an opportunity for Americans to design a new a prosperous future that can eventually accommodate the 400 million Americans expected by 2050, writes commentator Joel Kotkin in a recent article in the Wall Street Journal.

With continued population growth, the nation's cities will certainly have a chance to reinvent themselves, though its very likely that most American's will continue to enjoy living in lower density communities in the urban periphery.

"Perhaps the most daunting challenge will come not so much from accommodating racial diversity, but dealing with the problem -- existent in virtually all advanced economies -- of class."

To help deal with the challenges of growth, Kotkin suggests a renewed commitment to infrastructure investment.

"...We need to deal with the future by doing those things that in the past Americans have done best -- building new infrastructure and giving people the opportunity to take care of themselves and their families. Most major surges of economic growth and population have been facilitated by such investments -- canals in the early 19th century; railroads during the industrial age; roads, bridges and electrification during the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower eras. Today we need to commit ourselves to building both hard and new infrastructure: more universal high-capacity broadband and better drainage systems, new electric transmission lines and renewable energy sources, better roads and innovative forms of public transit."