Metropolitan density, energy efficiency and carbon emissions: Multi-attribute tradeoffs and their policy implications

► Transport VMT and Btu per capita are considered across 57 U.S. metro areas in 2000. ► Per capita VMT, Btu and vehicle emissions are inverse to metro core area population density. ► Interior road congestion and housing costs rise with core but not peripheral densification. ► Spatial non-density and aspatial transport approaches constitute alternate policy levers.