While many smart growth advocates embrace the idea of allowing congestion to worsen to encourage the public to drive less, a recent opinion column argues the strategy can only work if good alternatives to driving exist.
"How do we address our congestion problem? Well, if congestion is the result of too many cars and too few roads, the obvious approach is to increase the capacity of the road network and reduce the use of that network.
Historically, the [Atlanta] region's approach has largely focused on one side of congestion - road capacity. But adding new lanes of highway is becoming increasingly problematic. The revenue available from the federal government is expected to decline. State government revenue labors under a gas tax that has not been changed since 1971. And construction costs are increasing dramatically because of the increased value of right of way and the increase in the cost of concrete, asphalt and structural steel.
But increasingly the solution to congestion has to focus on the other side of congestion, i.e., reducing the number of miles driven. To have a significant effect on miles driven we have to make driving, particularly driving alone, less desirable and make the alternatives more appealing.
To encourage more people to use alternatives we could substantially increase the gas tax or charge a price for each mile driven, an option that Portland, Ore., is experimenting with.
This approach, however, will be effective only if there are good alternatives to driving alone."
Specifically, the author calls for investment in reliable public transit, bike lanes, and HOV lanes before the public embraces alternatives to driving.
FULL STORY: Make driving less desirable and alternatives more appealing

Good Planning Under Bad Leadership
Planners must sometimes work under bad leadership. Here are suggestions for responsive planning in challenging political environments.

Legendary Parking Guru Donald Shoup Dies at 86
Urbanists are mourning the loss of a dynamic voice for parking reform and walkable cities.

Amtrak Cascades Line Breaks Ridership Record
The route linking Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver, BC served nearly one million riders in 2024.

Over 71K Office-to-Apartment Units in the Pipeline for 2025
Adaptive reuse projects are continuing to bring thousands of new housing units onto the market as demand for office space remains low.

How Houston Can Be a Model for Housing Reform
The city builds more new housing than almost any other and has dramatically reduced homelessness, yet low-income families struggle to find affordable housing.

Delivering for America Plan Will Downgrade Mail Service in at Least 49.5 Percent of Zip Codes
Republican and Democrat lawmakers criticize the plan for its disproportionate negative impact on rural communities.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Brookings
City of White Salmon
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service