| Transit-oriented development — or dense, comprehensive development with a mix of housing, retail and services around transit stations— has garnered attention among planners, environmentalists, and public health advocates. These developments allow walking and bicycling within neighborhoods for healthier and less sedentary lifestyles, and they reduce auto dependency, which translates into lower consumption of fossil fuels, less air pollution, and lower spending on transportation. The concept of transit-oriented development is not new to Boston, a city that created streetcar suburbs in the 19th century and still continues to function best along transit lines.
How are we doing?
Almost 80% of jobs in Boston, 51% of Boston’s public schools and 56% of all Boston residents are located within a 10-minute walk of an MBTA commuter rail or subway station or a surface trolley stop.
Concerned about traffic congestion, loss of open space and increases in air pollution, many metropolitan areas are starting to consider ways to curtail sprawl with growth boundaries, buffer zones and transit-oriented development. While issues of transportation and congestion have begun to draw public attention, change in zoning patterns and in actual development is still very slow.
See indicator 10.3.1 for more details.
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