Transit-oriented development (TOD) is an urban growth strategy centered on public transportation that seeks to create vibrant, walkable neighborhoods while increasing transit ridership and decreasing congestion while creating sustainable real estate investment opportunities.

TOD helps low income households save on transportation costs, freeing up income to invest in other areas that benefit all residents of their community.

Increased Market Value

Develop near transit stations can increase ridership, real estate value and access to jobs or destinations; but some cities still employ outdated zoning or land use policies which prevent dense and walkable development.

Transit-oriented development (TOD) refers to neighborhoods designed around public transportation, with higher density residential and mixed use properties in its immediate area and lower density areas radiating outward from it. TODs are intended to be walkable with narrow streets and reduced parking for personal vehicles.

Urban revitalization focuses on creating vibrant centers of activity to foster sustainable development and create economic opportunity, by increasing accessibility for those without cars. It’s an important strategy for cities looking to maximize the benefits of their existing public transport system and fulfill the Sustainable Communities Act goals, by connecting to public transit so residents can more easily get to work, school, shopping or visiting family and friends more quickly.

Increased Population

TODs facilitate compact city growth by integrating land development with transit service, helping reduce car traffic and pollution while making it possible for people to live without personal vehicles. TOD also benefits low-income households that spend a larger proportion of their income on transportation compared with higher-income families; by cutting transportation costs further back from funds available for food, housing and education.

TOD projects typically feature a central transit stop surrounded by high-density mixed use areas with pedestrian-friendly streets and housing options that accommodate all income levels, parks, and retail services.

TOD developments can lead to an increase in population, which in turn drives demand for housing and retail services – increasing real estate market value in the surrounding area while simultaneously increasing public transit use by low-income households who rely more heavily on it than wealthier counterparts.

Reduced Traffic Congestion

TOD fosters compact city development by integrating land development with transit service. This walkable development helps combat sprawl by decreasing dependence on motor vehicles for work/school commutes/shopping trips; offering healthy lifestyle options with reduced pollution emissions as well as safer streets/communities.

TOD can help reduce peak-hour traffic congestion near transit stations in a number of ways, including: reducing car trips; increasing mode shifts from transit to other modes; shortening trip lengths; but not all TOD initiatives are created equal.

TOD strategies that are implemented effectively build upon and complement existing urban form rather than try to transform it. They place an emphasis on housing while offering avenues for sustainable, voluntary and politically feasible incremental growth. One such project in Arlington, Maryland combined market rate apartments and income restricted units on an abandoned surface lot at East Liberty Station along with retail services and neighborhood serving activities into one transit-oriented community.

Increased Sustainability

Concentrating housing, office buildings and amenities near transit stations creates vibrant walkable neighborhoods that improve public transit ridership while decreasing car traffic pollution levels and supporting local economic activity.

TOD offers transit agencies who struggle to maintain existing service or expand it with sustainable financing opportunities, like value capture strategies. Value capture can help offset some of the costs of building and operating new transit infrastructure by taking advantage of any increases in property values generated by its presence.

While protecting our existing neighborhoods is vitally important, we also must foster growth and development in areas with good transit access. TOD can be an excellent means of accomplishing this, particularly at a time when affordable housing needs to be provided more rapidly. In addition, outdated zoning and land use restrictions that impede private sector construction near transit must also be eliminated in order to promote TOD development.