Bye, bye suburbia?
Ever hear of James Howard Kunstler? If you live in the suburbs, especially those located a long commute from any major city, he has something to say to you: Your lifestyle is on the way out.
Kunstler has written a dozen books. Today he’s talking a lot about how the growing scarcity of oil, and the resulting higher price of it, is going to mean the end of far-flung suburbs. It will be just too expensive for people to fuel up their cars every day and drive miles and miles to work.
To Kunstler, this means the return of towns and cities that are centered around retail hubs. You can read about Kunstler and his theories here, in this BusinessWeek story written by Mara Der Hovanesian.
Is Kunstler onto something? I think so. It just doesn’t make sense for large groups of people to live far from where they think. It already takes a serious toll on people’s quality of life; It’s not healthy to spend hours every day on crowded highways. Now it’s taking a larger toll, thanks to higher gas prices, on people’s pocketbooks.
It’s time to think about living closer to our major economic hubs. It just makes sense. What do you think? Are there benefits to living in far-flung suburbs that I’m not considering? If so, let me know.
Tags: cheap oil, far-flung suburbs, James Kunstler, suburbiaRelated Stories
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2 opinions for Bye, bye suburbia?
Douglas Karr
May 2, 2008 at 3:51 pm
While populations may concentrate more, I believe he’s vastly understating the American spirit. Park ‘n Rides, Light Rail, mass transit, and telecommuting are all answers to this issue. American’s will not be giving up their homes and suburban lifestyles to live and work in the big city. No way.
Dan
May 4, 2008 at 5:58 am
Hi, Douglas:
Thanks for your comment. I agree with what you are saying, but I wonder if the farthest-flung of the suburbs are the ones that will evenutually disappear. These locations, even with Park ‘n Rides and light rail, seem so inconvenient for people who have to commute to a major economic hub. I’d think that for quality-of-life issues alone, the idea of living far, far from where you work is a bad one.
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