States and metropolitan areas across the country face a seemingly insolvable planning challenge. VMT per capita is rising annually, and congestion in cities and surrounding suburbs is worsening. However, road capacity added to relieve congestion is rapidly consumed. These trends have created a broad search for transportation solutions, including a renewed effort to better coordinate land use and transportation. Brownfields redevelopment strategies in particular are attracting substantial attention.

States and metropolitan areas across the country face a seemingly insolvable planning challenge. VMT per capita is rising annually, and congestion in cities and surrounding suburbs is worsening. However, road capacity added to relieve congestion is rapidly consumed. These trends have created a broad search for transportation solutions, including a renewed effort to better coordinate land use and transportation. Brownfields redevelopment strategies in particular are attracting substantial attention.

Thousands of former industrial and commercial sites in the United States lie idle and contaminated in metropolitan areas, despite their valuable central locations. Revitalizing these "brownfields" can reduce trip lengths, make more efficient use of existing infrastructure, support transit systems, and make walking and biking viable mode choices. In addition, brownfields redevelopment can stimulate local economies, strengthen communities, protect the environment, and improve the local tax base, creating broad support and partnership opportunities.

Transportation can play a critical role in brownfield redevelopment. First, existing and former transportation facilities—such as railroad yards—are frequently brownfield sites themselves. Second, transportation is critical to the redevelopment process because good accessibility is a virtual prerequisite for developers seeking opportunities for new projects or businesses looking for a new location. Finally, many transportation goals—improved access, reduced trip times and lengths, efficient use of the transportation system, maintenance of existing infrastructure, and even air emissions reductions—can be accomplished through brownfield redevelopment.

U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) policy strongly supports restoration and redevelopment of brownfield sites. In April 1998, DOT Secretary Rodney E. Slater announced, "Through leadership and financial assistance programs, the Department of Transportation encourages state and local transportation agencies to address community brownfields redevelopment in transportation planning and other project development processes." Under this new policy, transportation agencies may spend federal transportation funds on the assessment and clean up of contaminated sites, provided that the activity is part of an "eligible transportation project" and makes "transportation sense."

Further Reading:

Redeveloping Brownfields with Federal Transportation Funds