Automobiles and street networks are all around us every step of the way in our daily lives, and we now have communities where, practically speaking, this is the only mobility system in place. Not an ideal situation by any means, but one that works (with significant frictions and deficiencies) and is preferred by the overwhelming majority of the public. Information on how to accommodate this mode how to design highways, lay out local streets, provide parking facilities, regulate traffic flows, and incorporate physical safety features is readily available in technical publications and need not be repeated. Neither will the strategies discussed here include the possible rebuilding of city districts to accommodate the automobile or the procedures for building new completely car-oriented communities or districts.

The task here is to go one step further and to search for and evaluate possibilities for more responsible and effective approaches of dealing with the opportunities and the existing problems. The goal is not to eliminate the automobile and restrict it universally, but to make it behave effectively and responsively under a diverse set of conditions. ^[50] Surface traffic conditions can become worse yet; if present trends continue unabated, real mobility crises in many communities are to be expected. As useful and as attractive as the car is, livability and the ability to function in many urban environments are at stake if some corrective actions are not taken.

The problems and possible remedial actions are not unknown; they have been identified many times over.