April 2010 • GEN 83 • Summary THE COSTS OF URBAN SPRAWL – INFRASTRUCTURE AND TRANSPORTATION Roman Trubka, Peter Newman, and Darren Bilsborough Summary of Actions Towards Sustainable Outcomes Environmental Issues/Principal Impacts • Te entrenched mode of suburban development for Australian cities has been questioned as governments generally struggle to contain urban growth within their boundaries (‘urban sprawl’). • Te impact of this mode of development as compared to redevelopment of existing urban sites needs to be understood in terms of their economic, environmental and social costs. • Government treasury ofcials are not usually aware of the extent of the costs of urban sprawl. • For infrastructure and transport these costs are not only incurred by roads, drainage and utilities, but also other services such as public transport, schools, hospitals, and emergency services. Basic Strategies In many design situations, boundaries and constraints limit the application of cutting EDGe actions. In these circumstances, designers should at least consider the following: • Te existing suburban development model isn’t only about the lifestyle choice of residents, but also about the future cost impacts of their choices on themselves, and the broader community. • Urban regeneration is a more cost efective solution for increasing population growth than continued sprawl. Tis paper demonstrates that fringe development is heavily subsidised and generates high public and private costs for transport, and infrastructure. • Decision makers in government, as well as those in industry need to understand this in order for urban redevelopment to be appropriately prioritised, and thus allow greater innovation for redevelopment models. Cutting EDGe Strategies • Built environment professionals have the ability to visualise alternative futures that foster more redevelopment. • Urban regeneration and transit oriented development ought to be the main focus of built environment professionals. • Urban regeneration and transit oriented development plays a key role in sustainable urban development. Synergies and References • Newton, P, 2010, ‘Beyond Green Fields and Brown Fields: Te challenge of Regenerating Australia’s Greenfeld suburbs’, Built Environment, Vol 36, Issue: 1, March 2010. • Newman, P, Beatley,T, and Boyer, H, 2009, Resilient Cities: Responding to Peak Oil and Climate Change, Island Press, Washington DC, USA. • Environment Design Guide: - GEN 45 Urban Development, Accessibility andTransport in Australia – Facing the Challenge - GEN 71 Towards Sustainable Urbanism - DES 15 Planning for Transit Oriented Development in Australian Cities