ENVI 278(S) Transportation and the Shaping of Urban America (Same as ArtH 208)

This course explores the relationship between transportation and life in contemporary urban America: How does transportation permeate urban life and how has transportation shaped settlement patterns? How have planners thought about "the transportation problem," how is that thinking flawed, and how might we reconceptualize the central issues surrounding transportation? How are transportation and the environment inextricably linked? How is transportation central to questions of equity? Would congestion pricing solve the urban transportation problem? Are improved telecommunications making transportation obsolete? What might transportation in a sustainable city look like? These are some of the questions that we shall tackle as we develop a conceptual framework for understanding the emergence of contemporary transportation systems, confront the problems these systems generate, and consider realistic solutions. Evaluation will be based on four short (4-5 pages) papers, midterm exam, and a final exam. No prerequisites.

Hour:  HANSON