TOD (Transit-Oriented Development) is an emerging trend of sustainable communities centered around high quality public transportation systems, often called “transit villages.” Such communities provide residents and workers the option of living and working without needing automobiles.
Studies demonstrate the advantages of TOD over traditional neighborhoods for both travel experiences and land values, with Hatch working to maximize transit investments for people, places, and profits.
Improved Access to Transportation
TOD involves building or retrofitting communities into compact, walkable mixed-use areas connected by higher order public transit (such as metro or passenger rail ). This reduces car dependency while encouraging alternative forms of transport such as walking and cycling – ultimately encouraging lower carbon footprint transportation options such as public transit.
TODs provide significant environmental advantages by reducing greenhouse gasses, fuel consumption and traffic congestion. Furthermore, TODs increase access to jobs and services while simultaneously creating vibrant neighborhoods full of activity and excitement.
TOD can increase accessibility and employment outcomes for low-skilled workers. However, this only occurs if TOD is designed specifically to promote equity; otherwise it can result in gentrification that prices out low-income residents while pushing them further from jobs resulting in mobility issues and greater vehicular mileage traveled.
Enhanced Environmental Sustainability
TOD involves creating walkable communities with top-of-the-line public transit. When properly implemented, TOD empowers its inhabitants to live without needing their cars, reducing energy and driving consumption by up to 85%.
TOD neighborhoods are dense and mixed-use communities that combine residential, commercial, civic spaces, amenities and other forms of activity into an integrated urban experience that reduces commute times while improving air quality. They contribute to environmental sustainability by lowering greenhouse gas emissions, improving air quality and decreasing surface area devoted to parking spaces.
TOD can also assist cities in combatting the challenges associated with gentrification and housing affordability by offering more affordable options for low-income residents near high-quality public transit. TOD efforts promoting equitable TOD (eTOD) ensure its benefits are accessible to all members of their community – this may involve addressing access barriers like ride fares and changes to neighborhood zoning codes to ensure equitable TOD provides much-needed alternatives to car-dependent lifestyles, reducing congestion and emissions.
Increased Economic Vitality
TODs provide an ideal model of sustainable urban growth, creating more accessible and sustainable employment opportunities within walkable neighborhoods. TOD models typically emphasize compact neighborhoods with high population densities and diverse land uses as well as multimodal transit connections to promote sustainability mobility and economic development.
TOD neighborhoods provide households with greater financial security by saving an average of $3,000 annually in annual commuting costs – this allows for investment into community amenities like parks and green spaces, which create greater financial security for families.
TOD also promotes affordable housing by including low-income households in its design, helping reduce gentrification. This is especially useful in areas near new and existing rapid transit systems where affordability can be an issue; Pittsburgh for instance uses TOD to increase housing options for core riders (the majority of transit users) by developing both new and repurposed affordable homes around East Liberty Station on its busway system.
Improved Quality of Life
TODs create or enhance compact, walkable communities that promote healthier and more efficient lifestyles for their residents. They encourage sustainable modes of transport such as walking, bicycling or riding transit while decreasing dependence on cars by offering jobs, shopping, housing and entertainment all close by to public transit services.
TODs also promote compact city growth that helps combat sprawl while limiting emissions and congestion. TODs typically consist of offices, shops, restaurants and residential areas – such as Minneapolis’ Lake Street Transit Village project that features a new county Human Services center as well as apartments close to Metro Transit stations on lakefront properties.
Transit-oriented development must be inclusive and equitable for it to reach its full potential. Failing to do so, TOD could contribute to gentrification by pricing low and middle-income households out of areas offering excellent transit service, as well as increasing travel costs for core riders – those most frequently using a region’s transit system.