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Transit-Oriented Development in the StatesIntroductionAcross the United States, in large cities such as Seattle and Miami and in smaller metropolitan areas such as Hartford,Conn., and Fort Collins, Colo., new transit systems are being built to aid mobility, reduce congestion and spark economicactivity. In 2012 alone, more than 30 metropolitan areas were building new transit lines, and many more projectsare slated to begin in the next few years. 1 Future transit riders may find themselves stepping onto a new light rail car inHouston, boarding a streetcar in Cincinnati or hopping on bus-rapid transit in Tampa. All these systems promise to helpreshape the cities they serve and bring new transportation options to citizens.Creating new transit systems is only part of the equation, however. Transit is much more likely to enhance the overalltransportation network if a neighborhood’s or city’s development patterns encourage transit ridership, a strategy referredto as transit-oriented development (TOD). Policymakers, private businesses and community advocates across the countryare working to build and encourage TOD near transit lines and stops. State legislatures have taken a lead role in manystates to create regulatory, planning and funding frameworks to encourage such development.The Center for Transit-Oriented Development believes that a TOD project should “Increase ‘location efficiency’ sopeople can walk and bike and take transit; boost transit ridership and minimize traffic; provide a rich mix of housing,shopping and transportation choices; generate revenue for the public and private sectors and provide value for both newand existing residents; and create a sense of place.” 2Figure 1. Increase in Transit Ridership, 1995-2011An Increase in Demand for TransitDemand for transit lines and TOD is shaped by a number of emergingdynamics. In 2011, public transit saw 10.4 billion trips, the secondmost since 1957. This number was topped only in 2008, whengas prices hit record highs. 3 Ridership increased by an additional 5percent in the first quarter of 2012, compared to the first quarter of2011. 4 Of interest is the fact that rural areas saw the largest spike intransit trips in 2011, a 5.4 percent increase over 2010. This increasein transit ridership may alleviate traffic congestion; the number ofvehicle miles travelled in 2011 sank by 1.2 percent. 5 Increasing fares,coupled with stagnating federal resources and decreasing assistanceSource: American Public Transit Association (APTA), 2012. from state and local governments, however, may threaten transitagencies’ ability to serve growing numbers of riders. Figure 1 illustratesthe transit rider increase between 1995 and 2011.The decline in vehicle miles traveled signals a shift toward more transit use. According to the 2009 National HouseholdTravel Survey (NHTS), the number of miles driven per person has declined since 2001 for every driver age group. 6Accompanying this trend is a decreasing reliance on personal vehicles; NHTS also recorded a slight dip in the averagenumber of vehicles per household—the first since the survey began in 1969—although ownership rates remain higherthan in 1995. 7 Nationwide, about 8 percent of the U.S. population now does not own a vehicle. 8Younger Americans especially are choosing to travel less or use emerging transportation modes; a recent report concludedthat the average number of vehicle miles travelled (VMT) had dropped 23 percent since 2001 for people age 16 to 34. 9In the same time period, that age group—primarily approximately 50 million millennials—increased their transit milesby 40 percent and took 24 percent more trips by bicycle and 16 percent more trips on foot. 10National Conference of State Legislatures | 1