Access to Choice

Abstract

Despite differences among land use approaches, their common element for land use transportation policy is a focus on accessibility (the ability to reach valued destinations conveniently) rather than mobility (the ability to travel fast). Where valued destinations are nearby or accessible by transit, the reasoning goes, they can be accessible even without rapid and unconstrained travel. Thus traditional roadway construction and widenings, with attendant increasing travel distances and low densities, are de-emphasized in favor of development in areas of high accessibility, even at the cost of reduced travel speeds. The author of this article contends that critics of land use alternatives are ignoring existing regulatory constraints on choice. They forget that the primary aim of these proposals is to expand households' choices in how to live and travel, not to reduce VMT.

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