Urban Sprawl

urban sprawl, also called sprawl or suburban sprawl, the rapid expansion of the geographic extent of cities and towns, often characterized by low-density residential housing, single-use zoning, and increased reliance on the private automobile for transportation. Urban sprawl is caused in part by the need to accommodate a rising urban population; however, in many metropolitan areas it results from a desire for increased living space and other residential amenities. Urban sprawl has been correlated with increased energy use, pollution, and traffic congestion and a decline in community distinctiveness and cohesiveness. In addition, by increasing the physical and environmental “footprints” of metropolitan areas, the phenomenon leads to the destruction of wildlife habitat and to the fragmentation of remaining natural areas.

During the period of economic prosperity in the United States following the end of World War II, increased manufacturing output and new federal loan programs allowed many American citizens to purchase single-family homes and private automobiles. At the same time, continued road-building projects, most notably the onset of the Interstate Highway System in 1956, and other infrastructure development made it possible to build homes on land that was previously inaccessible. Compared with land in the cities, suburban land was relatively inexpensive, and the homes constructed on this land afforded more space to their occupants than inner-city dwellings. Some citizens moved to the suburbs to enjoy a lifestyle that was ostensibly closer to nature; however, others moved to escape the congestion, crime, and noise of the city. Suburban residents retained a connection to the city through their automobiles.

suburban housing

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Over time this migration to the suburbs, along with rising local populations, led to substantial increases in the geographic extent, or spatial footprint, of metropolitan areas in the United States. According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census, the causes of urban sprawl are divided equally between local population increases and lifestyle choices. For example, between 1970 and 1990, metropolitan areas in the western United States (such as Las Vegas, Nevada, Seattle, Washington, and Salt Lake City, Utah) experienced massive influxes of new residents that contributed to increases in their individual spatial footprints. On the other hand, in the metropolitan areas of the eastern and central United States, relatively modest population growth was also accompanied by significant spatial growth. For example, the population of the metropolitan areas of Chicago, Illinois, Kansas City, Missouri, and Baltimore, Maryland, grew by 1 percent, 16 percent and 20 percent, respectively, between 1970 and 1990, but each area’s geographic extent grew by 24 percent, 55 percent, and 91 percent, respectively. The spatial footprints of major cities in the Midwest and the Northeast, such as Detroit, Michigan, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, grew approximately 30 percent even as the cities experienced declines in population over the same period.

For many years, urban sprawl was thought to be an exclusively American problem; however, this phenomenon is occurring in several other countries. According to data collected in 2002 by the European Environment Agency, the population of a subset of European countries increased by only 6 percent between 1980 and 2000; however, the spatial footprint of built-up areas within these countries increased by 20 percent. The spatial footprints of some metropolitan areas, such as Palermo, Italy, expanded significantly more from the mid-1950s to the late 1990s. Palermo’s population rose 50 percent but its spatial footprint increased 200 percent over the period.

Worldwide, people are moving to cities. According to the United Nations Population Division, 29 percent of the world’s population lived in urban areas in 1950. By the late 2000s this figure had increased to about 49 percent. In developed countries this fraction was much higher. In the United States, for example, the urban population rose from roughly 64 percent in 1950 to about 81 percent in 2007. Similarly, Japan’s urban population increased from roughly 40 percent to about 66 percent over the same period. In contrast, less-affluent developing countries contain fewer urban residents. In India, for example, the urban population increased from 17 percent in 1950 to about 29 percent in 2007. Similarly, Egypt’s urban population rose from about 32 percent to approximately 43 percent over the same interval.