Paving the Way: How Highway Construction Has Contributed to Sprawl in Maryland
Publication Date: November 2000
Author(s): Brad Heavner
Keywords: transportation; sprawl; induced demand
Highway construction has been a key factor creating sprawl in Maryland. Data shows that highways intended to serve the needs of existing communities and alleviate traffic have instead allowed migration outward from the cities. They have been a cause of sprawl rather than a solution to congestion. Paving the Way presents an analysis of all developed residential and commercial properties in central Maryland and the Eastern Shore in relation to all major highways, finding that highways act as magnets for development.