The Drive for Dollars
How Fiscal Politics Shaped Urban Freeways and Transformed American Cities
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The story of the interplay between finance, freeways, and urban form in the 20th century and their enduring impact on American cities and neighborhoods in the 21st. American cities are distinct from almost all others in the degree to which freeways and freeway travel dominate urban landscapes. In The Drive for Dollars, Jeffrey R. Brown, Eric A. Morris, and Brian D. Taylor tell the largely misunderstood story of how freeways became the centerpiece of U.S. urban transportation systems, and the crucial, though usually overlooked, role of fiscal politics in bringing freeways about. The authors chronicle how the ways that we both raise and spend transportation revenue have shaped our transportation system and the lives of those who use it, from the era before the automobile to the present day. They focus on how the development of one revolutionary type of road--the freeway--was inextricably intertwined with money. With the nation's transportation finance system at a crossroads today, this book sheds light on how we can best fund and plan transportation in the future. The authors draw on these lessons to offer ways forward to pay for transportation more equitably, provide travelers with better mobility, and increase environmental sustainability and urban livability.
About this Author
Jeffrey R. Brown is Professor and Chairperson in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at Florida State University. His interest in transportation dates to his childhood in Southern California where an early fascination with the extensive local freeway system grew into a curiosity about cars, trains, buses, and planes and how their use shaped cities and affected the lives of city residents. Eric A. Morris is Professor of City and Regional Planning at Clemson University, where in addition to transportation history, he studies the links between transportation and geography and activity patterns, happiness, and quality of life. He attended Harvard for his undergraduate work, and after a decade writing for television programs in Los Angeles received an M.A. and a PhD. in urban planning from UCLA. While a doctoral student, he wrote a column on transportation and urbanization for the New York Times' Freakonomics blog. Brian D. Taylor is a Professor of Urban Planning and Public Policy in the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and Director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at UCLA. He studies travel behavior and transportation equity, finance, history, and politics. His recent research examines the role of public finance in shaping transportation systems and travel outcomes, the socio-economic dimensions of travel behavior, and the effects of traffic congestion on regional economies and housing production, and public transit use and finance prior to and during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Reviews
"Without understanding how they were funded and financed, it is difficult to understand the impact of the vast nation's network of roads, streets, and freeways. In The Drive for Dollars, the authors clearly describe how money was the catalyst that brought the grand plans to life, both for good and bad." --Robert Puentes, President and CEO, Eno Center for Transportation
"The Drive for Dollars tells a fascinating story about the unintended consequences that flow from choosing specific tax options-especially cents-per-gallon fuel taxes-to underpin urban interstate freeway funding. To tell this masterful tale, the authors weave a multi-disciplinary account from the historical records in planning, civil engineering, public administration, and community development. The book is essential reading for anyone interested in urban or transportation history." --Asha Weinstein Agrawal, Director of MTI's National Transportation Finance Center, San José State University
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