Post Peak Driving, America Needs a Road (Construction) Diet

Though it may be too soon to say for sure, it looks like the United States has reached peak driving. So shouldn’t we cut back on new road construction?

1 minute read

March 3, 2014, 5:00 AM PST

By Anna Bergren Miller @abergrenmiller


So asks Eric Jaffe, who suggests that a fix-it-first road funding policy is most appropriate for an era in which Americans drive less. Jaffe’s argument is bolstered by evidence that some transportation authorities have already begun to adapt to the change in transportation habit. The Maryland DOT, for instance, recently acknowledged that “a return to strong annual VMT growth is unlikely.

“For sure, we need a new source of funding, with the busted gas tax nearing its demise,” writes Jaffe. “It’s also high time to challenge the idea that the amount of road funding we’ll need in the future is the same as what we’ve needed in the past.”

Friday, February 28, 2014 in The Atlantic Cities

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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