Colorado Politics

Denver is among the most car-dependent cities in the world, study says

As Denver is focused on getting residents to ditch their vehicles and use more public transit, one recent study concluded Denverites sure love their cars.

Arcadis, a global engineering company with a division based in Colorado, released its “Sustainable Cities Mobility Index” this week, ranking some of the world’s biggest cities by the sustainability of their urban transportation systems, the Denver Business Journal reports.

Worldwide, Denver ranked 80 out of 100 on the index. As the Business Journal explains, that’s not necessarily a great end of the index spectrum to be on. The more car-dependent the city, the worse the score.

Detroit, Tampa, Indianapolis and Houston were among the U.S. cities to score worse than Denver. Hong Kong led the index as no. 1 in the world, followed by Zurich, Paris and Seoul.

The study does specifically speak to Denver’s score on the index, as the Journal notes:

What does the report say about Denver? “Today, 73 percent of Denver commuters still drive to and from work by personal vehicles, however, traditional automobile commuting will not lead to a sustainable future as the population continues to grow exponentially.”

Last year, Arcadis ranked Denver as the world’s 49th-most sustainable city, and the sixth-most sustainable city in the U.S. in its Sustainable Cities Index.

The study recommends “non-traditional approaches and leveraging technology to meet the mobility needs.” Over the summer, Denver officials announced plans to create a department of transportation to focus on mobility and improve transportation in the city. The city recently noted it will take some time to create, with many moving pieces. The creation of a cabinet-level department requires an amendment to the city charter, prompting a vote.

You can find the full study here, and the Denver Business Journal’s piece here.

 


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