Suburb-to-Suburb

I agree with Rick's amendments to my post, but I wanted to disagree with one part of his comments.  It is true that many suburban residents have nothing to do with the center city and that roughly half of commuters are suburb-to-suburb.  Now, half is not all, so moving towards the core would help, but Rick is right that it would not free suburban dwellers of the need to commute.  On the other hand, travel to work is just one way that people use cars, and moving from the outskirts of a metropolitan area to walkable, transit-friendly neighborhood in a closer-in suburb or to a city center would help to eliminate reliance on the car for trips to the store, school, church, the gym, etc.  One recent study found that residents of New Urbanist, transit-oriented developments made roughly 50% fewer vehicle trips than residents of traditional suburbs.  It's not the whole solution, but it is one way to reduce dependence on the car.  Getting employers to move closer in would obviously help as well, but if gas prices remain high, employers located near transit are going to find it easier to recruit employees and enjoy some competitive advantages that might lure other employers back in from the corn fields.