Where To Live in an America With $4 Gas
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto 
on 06.18.08
Matthew Blackett of Spacing points out a study ranking the 50 largest US cities by their readiness to deal with $4 gasoline. TreeHugger readers will be familiar with the argument that denser cities with good transit use less fossil fuel per person; this study by Warren Karlenzig of Common Current goes further and looks at degree of sprawl, rate of usage of oil for heating, percentage of people who telework and use of transit.
Best Cities to Live In
1. San Francisco
2. New York
3. Chicago
4. Washington, DC
5. Seattle
6. Portland, OR
7. Boston
8. Philadelphia
9. Oakland, CA
10. Denver
" Ranking highest were cities with strong public transit system ridership, well-organized and dense city centers, a high degree of mixed real estate uses (retail, commercial, residential), and medium to high population density. Some cities, such as Honolulu, were reduced in the overall ranking by their use of oil for electricity, while Boston and New York were slightly reduced in their ranking because of their use of oil for heating. "
Worst Cities to Live In
41. Virginia Beach, VA
42. Forth Worth, TX
43. Nashville, TN
44. Arlington, TX
45. Jacksonville, FL
46. Indianapolis, IN
47. Memphis, TN
48. Louisville, KY
49. Tulsa, OK
50. Oklahoma City, OK
Interestingly, "With the exception of Indianapolis, all ten of these cities lie within what has been called the nation’s Sunbelt. The region experienced tremendous population growth during the 1960s and 1970s with development that can often be characterized as urban or exurban sprawl. "
Download the full report, "Major US City Preparedness for an Oil Crisis" (PDF)
More TreeHugger on Cities and Density:
Tall Cities = Green Cities?
Packed Like Sardines – Density is Good
Other Lists:
America's 50 Greenest Cities : Popular Science Ranks 'Em
Best Green Place to Live in America: Country Home Magazine Ranks 'Em
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
- Do You Live in One of America's Most Toxic Cities?
- Meet Ann Snook, The Nature Conservancy's Maya Forest Program Manager
- Mass Transit: Bringing People Together Separately Since 1863
- Avert a Food Crisis: 5 Tips for Saving Phosphorus in the Garden
- The British Throw Away $20 Billion Worth of Food a Year: That's a Lot of Crumpets
- This is Your Brain. This is Your Brain on...Air?
Comments ()
