Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
sprawl.jpgNo EIS necessary. Photo: tlindenbaum/Flickr

In the past few months we've reported on opponents of bike lanes, car-free parks, and congestion pricing using the pretext of environmental review to stymie initiatives that would reduce vehicle emissions. Norman Oder at the Atlantic Yards Report points us to another unintended consequence of the National Environmental Protection Act, the 1970 legislation that established the EIS process.

AYR recounts a talk given by progressive developer Jonathan Rose, who says that NEPA -- favored by a real estate industry that did not want to subject itself to an alternative law based on land use planning -- was flawed from the start:

"So the effect was that we turned our back on national planning, and weturned our back on a national infrastructure policy," Rose said. "And,at the same time, here’s what happens: 1000 individuals choose tosubdivide a parcel in the suburbs, or the exurbs, and it falls underthe screen of an environmental impact statement, each one is oneindividual act."

"One person chooses to build a 1000-unit urbanproject in a city and they get held up for five years in anenvironmental impact statement," he concluded. "And so the unintendedconsequence of NEPA actually was one more of the many things that madeit easier for suburban sprawl to proceed from 1970 to 2000 instead ofurban redevelopment."

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Likely Mayor Mamdani Supports Daylighting as DOT Digs In Heels

The next mayor will have to overcome a deeply entrenched bureaucracy opposed to the common-sense policy.

October 6, 2025

Under Pressure: Uber’s Navigation System Endangers the Public With Reckless Driving Directions

An Uber driver made an illegal u-turn and hit someone, but the in-app navigation told him to do it and the company won't give up the code.

October 6, 2025

Monday’s Headlines: Trump Games Continue Edition

Trump restored some security grant for New York, but billions of dollars in grant remain on ice. Plus more news.

October 6, 2025

Friday Video: Meet the Subway’s Straphanger-Free Trains

We've all seen them. Now, thanks to YouTube's "Half as Interesting," we can tell you the purpose of each one.

October 3, 2025

The MTA Is Headed To The Lab To Design The Ridgewood Busway

A filthy private road underneath the elevated M tracks could become a gleaming bus-first corridor.

October 3, 2025

Friday’s Headlines: Good News Edition

The Department of Transportation reports that traffic deaths are way down through the first three quarters of 2025. Plus other news.

October 3, 2025
See all posts