Traditional single use zoning and suburbia’s automobile domination have been responsible in creating many social problems in suburban America; condemning the young, old, and less economically prosperous to an environment lacking safe pedestrian access. The poor are forced to spend a large chunk of their budget commuting to work; the young and old do not have the opportunity for personal automobiles as a means of travel. There has been much attention paid to solving these social ills within the planning community. There are two main alternatives to the conventional low-density, urban-sprawl promoting, auto dependent, suburban tract developments. One is the Traditional Neighborhood Development (TND) or Neo-traditional Development (NTD), which are characterized by higher densities, mixed uses, provision of public transit, accommodation of the pedestrian and the bicyclist, and a more interconnected pattern of streets within the community. Emphasis is placed on creating a clear civic structure,

Traditional Neighborhood developments employ higher densities, mixed land uses, and pedestrian proximity to living, shopping and work facilities as a means of producing a more integrated and efficient community. There are, however, problems with TND’s economic feasibility. The customer base, at least at the outset, will be lower income, minority families; those who are already living in higher density locales. Middle to Upper class suburban households will be more reluctant to give up their comfortable lifestyle for one offering less privacy and personal space. Those who, because of ethnic and economic constraints, are unable to realize the American dream are more likely the targeted groups.

Some topics in this essay:
TND POD, Traditional Suburban, American Dream, Middle Upper, Conclusion Neo-traditional, Development TOD, Dependency Neo-traditional, Introduction Traditional, Oriented Developments, Personal Growing, private space, sense community, auto dependency, modes transportation, neo-traditional developments, alternative modes, alternative modes transportation, neo-traditional planning, community pride, reduce auto dependency, mass transit, built environment, sense community pride, promote alternative modes, create sense community,