Connecting Transportation and Land Use

GREATER SALT LAKE (Build a Better Burb) – This document is one of a series of created for Build a Better Burb, the Hub of Great Suburban Design. The series emerged from the Build a Better Burb Sprawl Retrofit Council in Miami, Florida, in March, 2016—an event aimed at expanding transportation choice, sense of place, and sustainability of the suburbs.

The Problem
Metropolitan Planning Organizations have historically focused planning and funding allocation solely on transportation needs, without critically considering implications of other closely associated factors (environment, economic development, land use) that influence and are influenced by transportation

Discussion
Barriers exist for Metropolitan Planning Organizations to have collaborative discussions and support local governments with land use, economic development, and environment all decisions. However, these discussions are critical in order for mutually beneficial relationships between land use and transportation to occur. Decisions regarding either transportation or land use directly impact each other, and ultimately all together determine the quality of life places provide. By failing to deeply consider land use implications, metropolitan planning organizations have the capability to encourage spending transportation funds in traditional ways that can potentially contribute to sprawl…