The development of the United States highway system has had negative impacts on the urban character of our country's cities. One of the main catalysts, if not the main catalyst, of urban expansion has been the development of transportation. It made it extremely convenient and easy for people to move away from urban centers and develop rural America. As a result, many major cities across our country have felt the effects of sprawl as downtown economies dwindle. Highways have also played a key role in the standardization of American urban environments. Many urban areas across the country have lost the character and sense of place they once embraced. The government should implement more effective strategies to stop these problems. Different strategies in locating highways and strategies to discourage car use would help revitalize urban centers by decreasing traffic congestion and car dependence. The original intent of road development in our country appeared to be for the legitimate reasons of postal service and agricultural shipping routes. Only when the auto industry and economic opportunists got involved did America's transportation system begin to change. The bus and tram systems in the cities seemed to work quite well. The “if it ain't broke, don't fix it” theory didn't apply here. The auto industry has persuaded many cities to rid the streets of streetcars and reduce bus travel. The overall results were good for the automotive industry. Urban centers began to lose large parts of their populations due to urban flight from cities. The stereotype of suburban-style living... middle of paper... would then be recorded and the user would be billed accordingly. I imagine this system is similar to paying electricity bills. Electricity is not a common public good and it shouldn't be because some citizens consume more of it than others. No one should have to pay for electricity that someone else uses more frequently. This also applies to roads, only people who use them most frequently should pay accordingly. The excess money could be used to help fund research conducted into finding alternative fuel methods. I hope these strategies will help stop the sprawl problems plaguing our cities. Public transit or other forms of transportation may be used to get to work or other destinations. Overall, our country's transportation system has created and continues to create major problems for cities from coast to coast.