Urban sprawl: A worldwide problem

Homes, Isle of Wight, garages at front but off to the side. Google Street Views.

Sprawl is a global problem. Cars are popular the world over. Garages forward or off to the sides of a homes are everywhere. Years ago I was in Tunisia in a town on the edge of the Sahara desert. I saw a new home under construction. The home had a very traditional look, it fit right in with the older residences, except for one thing: It had a garage forward design with the garage jutting out from the home toward the street.

The continuing sprawl that surrounds London is sad but it is not unique. It is sadly all too common everywhere.

What is sad about London, and so many other towns throughout Southwestern Ontario, is that there are spots in the world that are experimenting with solutions to sprawl. These place are not common but there are a lot of them. Sadly, I know of no examples of London developers thinking way outside the box -- be it a fancy suburban box with its garage forward or a highrise box, a filing cabinet for people.