An expert on transportation and urban planning solutions, Dr. Catherine Ross was selected to advise the Obama Administration for the first-ever White House Office of Urban Policy in 2009, and is currently the director of the Georgia Institute of Technology's Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development. Her notable resume also includes authorship of the newly-released Megaregions: Planning for Global Competitiveness, which addresses the growing demand that accompanies the nation's economic centers. As populations rise and resources shrink, the book explores comprehensive solutions to ensure that American cities remain both healthy and prosperous. Although their future is uncertain, Ross explained to MGB more about what megaregions are, how they affect the environment, and potential solutions to their many problems.
What exactly constitutes a megaregion and how did this term come about?
Megaregions are connected cities and their surrounding areas, generally areas with a population of about 10 million. In the U.S., the 10 largest megaregions represent 80% of our economic activity and 7 of them have populations of 10 million people. By 2050, the U.S. population is projected to increase by another 130 million people. By planning for the megaregion, we can keep our cities economically viable and healthy. A healthy city (region) is a place with:
- A high quality of life (places to walk in a safe environment, opportunities to interact with other citizens/neighbors)
- Good jobs
- Cultural amenities/cultural attractions—how we perpetuate society
- Natural assets and resources, from parks to ports.
The term megaregion emerged from the historical evolution of megalopolis (Greek for large city), coined by Jean Gottmann in 1961 in his study of the northeastern United States. It has been adopted by myself, America 2050, and others throughout the world.
What types of development and growth problems are megaregions in the U.S. currently facing? And how can cooperation help address these problems?
There are a number of challenges confronting the megaregions, and these include: increasing congestion and need for greater natural resources management; global competitiveness and the role of regions in global markets; climate change; the need for freight corridors and networks linked to international trading opportunities and partners with expanded rail and transit; the need to achieve greater sustainability through synchronizing transportation policies with policies for housing, land use, energy, the economy, and the environment; the need for project selection and coordination processes conducive to economic activities; and lastly the need for different services and technologies that can operate more effectively in the emerging global economy and focus on global environmental challenges. The megaregion framework provides the opportunity for cost savings through reducing duplication of services and greater efficiency and capability to meet the needs of different states sharing natural resources (common water basins, green infrastructure, connected corridors, air pollution, etc.). Joint economic development planning and greater resource allocation through shared resources offer the possibility of innovative solutions to common problems and challenges.
From an environmental standpoint, what do you believe must be done in order to make American cities healthier and more ecofriendly?
Planning and regulatory objectives need to be reworked to include indicators of health, wellbeing, and sustainability along with the traditional development goals including mobility and employment. One strategy is to integrate agencies that manage urban development and planning. There are a number of assessment tools that support this type of multi-objective strategic approach to development. Coordination has to occur not only across functional divisions, but also across jurisdictional lines within regions or megaregions. Environmental and social issues, economic activities, and travel demand are not limited by geographic boundaries. The ultimate success of the collective initiatives—which influence public expenditures and private fortunes—depends on cost justification. Healthy cities could see higher productivity, lower health care demands, and a renowned quality of life which attracts new talent and businesses. Ecologically sound cities enjoy access to high quality environments and greater economic opportunities.
Approximately 80% of the world’s carbon emissions are produced in urbanized area, therefore megaregions can have significant impact on carbon emissions through:
- Encouraging land-use patterns that reduce negative environmental impacts
- Coordination of gasoline and transport prices
- Coordination and management of natural resources
- Implementation of megaregion freight transport planning
- Expanding the diversity of transportation modes and technology
- Adapting existing and new transportation infrastructure to more extreme climate events at the level of the megaregion.
Your book proposes megaregion lifestyle and infrastructure changes, which can be expensive to accomplish on such a large scale. What types of cost benefits and paybacks, however, can the U.S. expect to see on these improvements?
Greater economic activity can be generated through linkages to key transportation nodes such as high-speed rail stops and airports. Major redevelopment in many areas creates the opportunity to accommodate expanding population and redevelopment, as well as new development in more efficient, profitable, and sustainable ways. The implementation of user fees (tolling and expanded partnership with the private sector) offer the ability to meet infrastructure needs and generate more resources. Of course taxes, including sales, payroll, property, and energy production, are all sources of revenue to be implemented at the megaregion scale. Traditional methods including tax increment financing, bonds, lease-back arrangements, separate funding streams for nationally significant projects, infrastructure banks for megaregions, and partnering with other governments where the megaregion borders another country are all potentially beneficial strategies. In the case of the latter, policy-significant development could be tied to benefits and special partnering arrangements could be established (establishing trade corridors and mobility priorities, shared revenue generation programs, environmental policies, governance strategies for joint economic opportunities, etc.).
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