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Road to Ruin An Introduction to Sprawl and How to Cure It

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Dom Nozzi

Foreword by Victor Dover

Book Code: C8129

ISBN: 0-275-98129-0

ISBN-13: 978-0-275-98129-7

DOI:

200 pages, figures, photos, tables

Praeger Publishers

Publication: 9/30/2003

List Price: $46.95 (UK Sterling Price: £26.95)

Availability: In Stock

Media Type: Hardcover

Also Available: Ebook

Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4

Subjects:

Reviews:

[P]rovides an arsenal of facts for a campaign against the types of land use patterns popularly and pejoratively perceived as sprawl and the types of transportation improvements that encourage those patterns. The book is easily accessibe to planners, planning commissioners, policymakers, students, or citizens with an interest in the topic.
—Journal of the American Planning Association Autumn 2004

Endorsement From Victor B. Dover, AICP
Dover, Kohl and Partners: In these pages we are shown how the physical form of our settlements and the details of our streets should matter most to us, rather than the number of lanes or the speed of the cars. Here we are told, let cities be cities, and don't suburbanize them.
Endorsement From Dan Burden
Executive Director
Walkable Communities, Inc.: Hurrah for Dom's work and clear vision for progressing toward human-scaled, people-oriented remedies to the suburban, car-dependent, traffic congestion most of us are plagued with.
Endorsement From Andres M. Duany
Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company: He uses plain English and simple drawings to clearly illustrate the origins of the crisis in community we face today. He deals with the erroneous "solutions" typically proposed by citizens, professional community planners and elected officials.

Description: What causes sprawl, and are there sensible solutions to its aggravating problems? Since the end of World War II, America has been obsessed with a desire to improve conditions for cars, not people, primarily through enormous subsidies for road widening and construction of free parking. Not only does this obsession worsen conditions for motorists (at great public expense), it traps communities in a vicious cycle that delivers a declining, sprawling, financially bankrupting future--regardless of the quality of regulations, plans, planners, or elected officials. Nozzi delivers an easy-to-follow introduction to sprawl's causes and offers common-sense solutions available to communities. The time is ripe for resurrecting the tradition of designing that makes people, not cars, happy. The key is returning to modest, human-scaled streets, parking, land use, and development regulations. Design principles encouraging walking, bicycling, and mass transit in conjunction with automobile travel are essential to creating livable cities once again. A professional city planner for over 15 years, Nozzi has firsthand knowledge of what works, what doesn't, and what real-world obstacles are faced when dealing with sprawl. Aimed at people who want an insider's introduction to our road, traffic, and land-use problems, this book is a useful guide to both professional planners and citizens concerned about the future of their own communities.

Table of Contents:

Tables
Figures
Acknowledgments
Foreword
Introduction
Dire Straits
We Have Met the Enemy . . . and It Is We Motorists
Fighting the Wrong Battles
Misguided Solutions: The Tendency to Foul Our Own Nest
Putting the Breaks on Sprawl
Properly Designed Streets
Ending Our Love Affair with the Car
Getting Back on Our Feet
Designing for the People
Toward Better Development Regulations
Conclusion
Appendix A: Urban-Rural Transect Regulatory Matrix
Appendix B: Special Area Plan for Transforming a Conventional Center
References
Index
About the Author

LC Card Number: 2003045760

LCC Class: HT384

Dewey Class: 307


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