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Suburban sprawlhas met its match as California Governor Arnold Schwartzenegger weighed in on the side of the environment by signing California Senate Bill 375, by Democratic Sen. Darrell Steinberg of Sacramento. This is a ground breaking development, and a hopeful shift toward building our cities in a more sensible fashion. Governor Schwartzenegger is now in the good company of other politicians who have recognized the over-reaching problems that suburban sprawl has caused.

This Bill is the first of its kind by a state.  It is a very aggressive piece of legislation, and reflects the urgency with which sates must act in order to stem the problems created by suburban sprawl. The bill requires the California Air Resources Board to set regional targets by September 2010 for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. The state intends to direct its annual $5 billion transportation fund to encourage regions to embrace compact residential development.

This redirection and commitment of transportation spending echos the sentiments of former governor of Massachusetts, Michael Dukakis, as he stated in the documentary film Sprawling From Grace, “…If you decide to focus on rail base public transportation, you’re going to get healthy down towns; you’re going to get greater density, healthier neighborhoods.” 

In a statement by (D) Sen. Darrell Steinberg he said, ”This fundamentally changes the way we think about growth.  It does not reduce growth. I think growth is inevitable and a good thing. But it will allow California to grow in ways that are sustainable for our environment.”

By signing this bill into law Gov. Schwarzenegger has shot a bullet into the advance of sprawl.  I can almost hear him echo the phrase, “… Consider this a divorce.”

Check out Reconnecting America’s web site www.reconnectingamerica.org, the site states:

Reconnecting America is a national non-profit organization that is working to integrate transportation systems and the communities they serve, with the goal of generating lasting public and private returns, improving economic and environmental efficiency, and giving consumers more housing and mobility choices. Reconnecting America provides both the public and private sectors with an impartial, fact-based perspective on development-oriented transit and transit-oriented development, and seeks to reinvent the planning and delivery system for building regions and communities around transit and walking rather than solely around the automobile.”

This really is a great source with a wealth of information on all things related to transit-oriented design. There is a great interview up there now with Peter Calthorpe, an urban designer who was featured in Sprawling From Grace. He gives a great perspective on what constitutes good TOD (transit-oriented development). He emphasizes that it is all about walkability:

“The idea is that people are more likely to use transit if they can walk to the station than if they have to drive, park, and then get on the transit system.” Go check it out.