TOD promotes urban development that optimizes residential, business and leisure space within walking distance of public transit. It addresses sprawl that leads to increased dependence on cars for travel while simultaneously increasing emissions from exhaust fumes that limit physical activity and expose people to toxic fumes.

TOD can redevelop underutilized spaces around train stations such as warehouses, parking lots and vacant land into high-density neighborhoods centered on a central transit stop with lower density areas branching off from it.

1. Increased Transit Ridership

Transit-oriented development (TOD) investments are one of the best ways to increase ridership on existing bus, train or subway systems. According to studies, public transportation investments often reap double the economic returns as highway investments do.

TODs aim to build compact, walkable communities centered on high quality transit systems that encourage density, land use diversity and pedestrian-oriented design, which has been shown to lower trip rates and encourage non-auto travel statistically significantly.

TODs may be relatively new to urban planning, but the concept dates back millennia when people gathered along busy corridors and nodes. Today’s TOD concept formalizes this tradition to increase sustainable living, improve walkability and help cities meet their sustainability goals. Research also suggests that TODs help increase ridership by decreasing car usage for work or shopping trips – saving people money as well as congestion while helping reduce environmental impacts from vehicles and fuel consumption.

2. Increased Economic Activity

Cities and regions can benefit from TOD projects through increased property tax revenues generated from them as well as through their relationship with public transit – increasing ridership on existing systems while creating demand for additional services.

TOD projects tend to center around existing train, bus, light rail or subway stations and feature higher density residential areas with multiple land uses nearby. This facilitates modal shift away from car travel while giving people of all ages and income levels easy access to jobs, schools and social activities without needing an automobile.

Many people conflate TOD and density, however these two concepts should be understood separately. TOD refers to creating dense walkable neighborhoods around transportation nodes while integrating multiple land uses while density refers to population per square mile in an area. Both concepts work in harmony toward creating sustainable urban environments that are equitable and resilient.

3. Improved Health

TODs offer easy access to jobs, housing, education and healthcare by placing these amenities near transit stations. By encouraging people of all ages and income levels to use public transit instead of their car for travel purposes, TODs decrease traffic congestion, air pollution emissions and dependence on foreign oil sources.

TOD encourages healthy lifestyles through physical activity like walking and bicycling, helping fight obesity as well as chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes. Furthermore, TOD gives residents opportunities to socialize with neighbors and friends which contributes to emotional wellbeing.

TOD offers an exciting and innovative solution for sustainable urban planning, yet for it to fully realize its full potential, planners must engage diverse stakeholders, address affordability and displacement concerns, as well as develop context-specific solutions in order to build equitable TODs. Download the Equitable TOD toolkit now to discover more!

4. Increased Environmental Sustainability

TOD projects that create residential and commercial spaces within walking distance of public transit hubs promote more sustainable lifestyles while simultaneously helping alleviate traffic congestion and decrease harmful air pollutants.

TOD is often associated with higher productivity and lower carbon footprints, and can even foster increased resilience to natural disasters by placing activities and housing in low-risk zones.

TOD (Transit-Oriented Development) and density can sometimes be confused, but they should be understood independently of one another. While TOD refers to communities built around transit stations, density measures the average amount of people per square mile.

Communities across the nation are adopting TOD strategies in order to ease traffic congestion, enhance health care delivery and create economic opportunity. By investing in TOD projects, cities can capture an increase in land value to fund additional transit improvements as well as affordable housing initiatives which promote inclusive sustainable growth.