Los Angeles—a city of dreams, palm trees, and Hollywood glamour—but also one of the worst-designed cities in the developed world. From its failing public transportation system to an ever-worsening housing crisis and wildfire mismanagement, LA is a case study in how bad urban planning can cripple a city.
Even more concerning, LA’s sprawling, car-dependent model has influenced urban development across the United States, making this a problem that extends far beyond California.
How did we get here? Why is LA’s housing crisis spiraling out of control? And could this city, once a leader in public transit, ever fix its mistakes?
Let’s break it down.
The Transportation Disaster: How LA Became a Car-Dependent Nightmare
To understand why Los Angeles ranks among the worst cities for both sustainability and transportation, let’s compare how people get around in LA versus a well-functioning city like Tokyo.
🚗 Los Angeles Commute Breakdown
- 81.6% of people drive alone
- 10.9% carpool
- 2.7% use public transportation
- 1.8% walk
🚆 Tokyo Commute Breakdown
- 28% drive
- 36% use public transit
- 13% bike
- 23% walk
The contrast is staggering. In LA, public transportation is nearly non-existent, and walking is barely an option.
Why Did LA Become So Car-Dependent?
- Horizontal, not vertical, growth: LA’s endless urban sprawl made owning a car essential.
- Zoning laws favor single-family homes: This limits density and prevents mixed-use developments where people can live, work, and shop in the same neighborhood.
- The highway obsession: In the mid-20th century, LA dismantled one of the world’s best public transit systems in favor of freeways.
- Oil and car industry influence: Los Angeles was built on oil money, and the city embraced a pro-car future at the expense of public transport.
🚨 The Result?
- Crippling traffic congestion
- Terrible air quality
- Expensive, unreliable public transit
- A city impossible to navigate without a car
LA’s Housing Crisis: Why It’s Getting Worse
As bad as LA’s transportation problem is, its housing crisis is arguably even worse.
🏠 Key Housing Statistics:
- LA County’s median home price: $900,000+
- 11% of homes in LA are overcrowded (triple the national average)
- 80% of residential land is zoned for single-family homes ONLY
This means affordable housing options simply don’t exist, forcing more people into homelessness.
LA’s Failed Housing Policies
1️⃣ Luxury Over Affordability
Los Angeles prioritizes building luxury apartments instead of affordable housing. A recent $1.2 billion investment aimed to provide housing for low-income residents but could only accommodate 1,400 families—a drop in the ocean for a city with 1.4 million households.
2️⃣ Zoning Laws Keep Housing Scarce
A staggering 80% of LA’s housing land is restricted to single-family homes, meaning apartment buildings are banned in most of the city. This forces prices sky-high and leaves low-income residents with nowhere to go.
3️⃣ Skyrocketing Rent
- Median rent for a single-family home: $5,000+/month
- Budget-friendly “co-living” spaces (20+ capsule beds per apartment): $600/month
- Homeless population: 75,000+ people, the highest in the U.S.
🚨 The Result?
- Homeownership is out of reach for most residents
- Renters are stuck paying astronomical prices
- Mass homelessness crisis
Fire Mismanagement: Why LA Can’t Stop Wildfires
Los Angeles faces some of the worst wildfires in the country—yet it fails to prepare for them properly.
🔥 Why Does LA Burn So Often?
- Dry climate and strong desert winds
- Dense vegetation near urban areas
- Outdated water infrastructure
🚨 What Went Wrong in the Palisades Wildfire?
- Firefighters only had access to 2/3 of the emergency water supply
- California restricted water reserves to combat drought, making firefighting harder
- Poor emergency planning led to water shortages during the fire
The city knows wildfires are inevitable, yet fails to prepare for them properly, leading to avoidable destruction every year.
LA’s Public Transit Problem: A Metro No One Wants to Use
Yes, Los Angeles actually has a Metro system.
🚇 But why don’t people use it?
- Safety concerns (crime and homelessness)
- Limited coverage (doesn’t reach key neighborhoods)
- Lack of investment in expansion
📉 Ridership has plummeted: From 2006 to 2019, Metro and bus ridership dropped by 43.75%—even before COVID.
🚍 The bus system isn’t much better: Greyhound and FlixBus, meant for long-distance travel, are used as makeshift local transit options due to the lack of better alternatives.
✈️ LA’s Poor Connectivity to Other Cities
- LA to Las Vegas (270 miles): Takes 4-7 hours by train or bus—slower than driving
- LA to San Francisco (381 miles): Over 9 hours by train (compared to 3 hours for similar distances in Europe)
🚄 What About California’s High-Speed Rail Project?
- Budget: $100+ billion
- Status: Still under construction
- Current progress: A single 3-mile bridge in Fresno that leads to nowhere
While Japan and Europe mastered high-speed rail decades ago, LA is still stuck in traffic.
The Ultimate Insult: LA Once Had One of the World’s Best Public Transit Systems
Here’s the biggest twist—Los Angeles once led the world in public transit.
💡 The Pacific Electric Railway (1901-1961) was a world-class streetcar system that connected LA’s suburbs efficiently and affordably.
🚗 What Happened?
- The rise of the car industry led to massive freeway construction
- Public transit was dismantled in favor of roads
- LA became the world’s most car-dependent city
Now, instead of efficient rail lines, LA has:
- 🚗 Endless freeways and gridlock
- 🚉 An underfunded, underused Metro system
- 💰 A sky-high cost of living due to poor planning
Can LA Fix This?
The short answer? Not without major reforms.
✔️ Solutions That Could Work
- Upzoning laws to allow more apartment buildings
- Expanding public transit and improving safety
- Investing in wildfire prevention infrastructure
- Shifting urban design to prioritize pedestrians and cyclists
❌ What Will Likely Happen Instead
- More luxury housing developments
- More band-aid fixes for public transit
- More wildfires and water shortages
Unless radical changes are made, Los Angeles is on track to become an even bigger urban disaster.
Conclusion: A Warning for Other Cities
LA is the poster child for bad urban planning—but here’s the real problem:
🚨 Other U.S. cities have copied LA’s model for decades.
Cities like Houston, Phoenix, and Atlanta have followed LA’s example of urban sprawl, car dependency, and restrictive zoning laws.
Now, as housing prices skyrocket and transportation systems collapse, many cities face the same fate as LA.
Will Los Angeles—and the rest of the U.S.—learn from these mistakes before it’s too late?
Or will we continue doubling down on a broken system?
Only time will tell.
