Via Planetizen, traffic congestion in major metros is gonna get a lot worse…
“Los Angeles, home to the nation’s worst traffic today, will continue to have the longest delays, with trips during peak hours taking nearly twice as long as they do when roads are free-flowing. But LA won’t be alone. Several cities face the dubious honor of having Los Angeles-like gridlock.
By 2030, drivers in 11 metro areas – Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Portland, San Francisco-Oakland, Seattle-Tacoma, and Washington, D.C. – will be stuck in daily traffic jams that are as bad as or worse than today’s infamous bottlenecks in Los Angeles, according to a new Reason Foundation study. In those cities it will take at least 75 percent longer to make a trip during peak hours than off-peak periods. So, for example, a trip that is supposed to take 30 minutes would take over 52 minutes.”
(posted by Richard)
September 5th, 2006 at 12:45 pm
Frightening predictions. What are the impacts going to be for the economy and creative workers?
Will some of these cities “collapse” not entirely unlike great civilizations of the past? That is, will the main economic drivers depart (ie major employers and the talent)?
Or, before that happens will some form of regulation (whether gov’t or market based) change things?
Is there anyone researching this that you know of? I’d like to read about it.
September 5th, 2006 at 2:24 pm
Do we need greater density? Will close in RE start to go up in value? Will people pay even more to be close in to commercial, office, and retail centers?
September 6th, 2006 at 12:48 am
Freeways (free highways) are an incredible tax payer subsidy to people who choose to live in suburbs. What if suburban commuters had to pay a portion of the costs of having the freeways as a daily toll?
In cities like San Francisco living in town might mean a larger mortgage, but would also mean lower gas bills and no daily freeway tolls.
I’m not sure what this system would do to housing prices. Something to ponder…
September 6th, 2006 at 9:20 pm
As energy, housing a.k.a. congestion costs grow the answer must come cooperatively. Unless city governments and county governments start taxing commonly for roads (which could happen)the employer must begin to play a role in both transportation improvements and housing reform – even to the extent of providing housing and underwriting future electric transportation projects. Of course, this will be more likely in an age of employee ownership, although given the need for workers to make concessions and to work together in a more cooperative fashion in the createive economy, this is not as wild a future as some once thought it to be.