City and Metropolitan planning

THE CAUSES OF SPRAWL

- Robert Bruegmann

Prepared by : Vidisha Gajjar

MCP-III
Masters in City Planning, Department of Architecture.

Introduction:

Central city for production. Employment cultural activities

suburbs

19th century

Central city suburbs

20th century

After industrial revolution- development in technology, economy and urban social life. Gradually Municipalized Transit System allowed workers to live at some distance from the smoke and soot of their workplace. Railways allowed the factories themselves to locate outside the city centers. Down town Concept starts and cities are becoming Metropolitan. Newer suburbs especially built after world war II, were auto mobile based and created Sprawl. In 19th century, middle class suburbs developed outside major urban centre. But in 20th century, influence of automobile turned once attractive small scale suburbs in to endless, congested Sprawl. Earlier suburbs depends upon the existence of City centre for both production, employment and cultural amenities. Today, Edge City- suburbs are totally different from earlier in size, complexity and even functions. Major suburb pattern is not suburb to centre, but from suburb to suburb. Edge city suburb are not suburb at all, but fundamentally new kind of decentralized city that be calls Technourbs

Motorized vehicles

Causes of Sprawl:
In U.S. after world war II new residential development is occurring at densities which are lower than average density. Most of the people hate sprawl because of loss of prime farm land, threatening plant and animal communities, contributing to air pollution and global climate change, requiring expensive new infrastructure, increasing commute times, fostering racial and class segregation, isolating women and contributing to a host of other ills. Author does not agree, he argues we have sprawl because that is what people want, a natural market response to the desire of millions of individuals. Anti Urban attitudes and Racing: Americans are at heart anti urban, Individual and low density living, auto mobile usage. They want to make life convenient and pleasant for themselves. In 19th century Industrial city becomes very unpleasant. Suburbia is a good place to live, work and raise children. While downtown is a place to see ballgames, go to night club, visit a museum or to do some special Christmas shopping. Americans wont allow to stay black people with them.

suburbs

Central city Automobile usage Convenient and pleasant life

Individual and low density livings

Causes of Sprawl:
Technology: Communication and transportation technologies. past two centuries- railroad tended to concentrate growth then the Automobile disperse it. Primary cause of growth in the successive development of carriage industry, the rail road, pubic transportation, and finally the automobile industry. Specific means of transportation, that has been a key factor in the large population disperses.

suburbs

Central city

Economic factors and The Capitalist: Capitalist system inherently doesnt work well, leading to market failure. Many individuals have claimed that sprawl is a logical result of capitalism because this kind of economic system includes buyers and sellers to act in ways to further their own good even the expense of their neighbors or the common good. Notion that sprawl is unavoidable unhappy result of policy of non inference capitalism. Developers, will maximize their profit by building at low densities, also causes sprawl. Some developers tries to accommodate as many people as possible into a single acre to maximize their profit. Americans never really choose to live suburbs, Americans were force to settle there by some powerful cabal of big business with the complicity of government.-General Motors conspiracy. Recent version- capitalist system is the wide spread idea that sprawl has some relation to the increasing globalization.

Automobile industry

Causes of Sprawl:
Government: Sprawl can be because of government failure, meaning bad policies at local, state and national level through home owner subsidies, highway programs, infrastructure subsidies and federal income tax deduction. If the federal government had not built super highways, subsidized suburban infrastructure, fostered long term self amortized mortgages, initiated federal mortgage insurance, allowed redlining neighborhoods. Argument is that superhighways were considered an important way to rejuvenate the city. federal agencies starting in 1930s specifically discriminated against city neighborhoods by introducing new low interest self amortize mortgages that were made available to suburbanities but denied to many city dwellers. Most banks, business, were perfectly happy to invest money in any part of city or suburbs where they could make profit. Most important, federal policy blamed for sprawl has been home owner deductions in federal income tax. These deduction has undoubtedly had a major impact on all aspect of American life.

Affluence and Economic attitudes: Sprawl has developed differently at different times and in different places. From the history two factors affecting sprawl: Affluence and Democratization. Citizens become more affluent, they enjoyed basic economic and political rights, more people have been able to gain for themselves. By Privacy ability to control ones own surroundings. By Mobility both personal and social mobility. By choice most important element of all and the most hotly disputed. Sprawl has certainly increased choice for ordinary citizens. so, privacy, mobility and Choice that once were available only to the wealthiest and most powerful members of society.

Thank you