Following the
Industrial Revolution, ribbon development became prevalent along
railway lines, predominantly in
Russia, the
United Kingdom, and the
United States. The deliberate promotion of
Metro-land along London's
Metropolitan Railway serves as a strong example of this form of development. Similar examples can be found from
Long Island (where Frederick W Dunton bought much real estate to encourage
New Yorkers to settle along the
Long Island Rail Road lines),
Boston and across the
American Midwest. Ribbon development is not restricted to construction along road or rail corridors, as it can also occur along
ridge lines,
canals and
coastlines, the last of which occurs especially as people seeking
seachange lifestyles build their houses for an optimal view. The resulting towns and cities are often difficult to service efficiently due to their remoteness and lack of density. Often, the first problem noticed by residents is increased
traffic congestion, as an increased number of people moves along the narrow urban corridor while development continues at the lengthening end of the corridor.
Urban consolidation and
smart city growth are often solutions that encourage growth towards a more compact urban form. Ribbon development can also be compared with a
linear village – a village that grows linearly along a transportation route as part of a city's expansion into the frontier. They also lead to dispersion of functions, as the need for pockets of dense development that rely on each other becomes less important. Ribbon development has long been viewed as a special problem in the
Republic of Ireland, where "
one-off houses" proliferate on rural roads. This causes difficulties in the efficient supply of water,
sewerage,
broadband, electricity, telephones and
public transport. In 1998, Frank McDonald contrasted development in the Republic with that in
Northern Ireland:
"Enniskillen [in Northern Ireland
] is well defined with clear boundaries to the town and well-laid-out shopping streets. Letterkenny, [in the Republic
] by contrast, appears as just one long street with bungalow development trailing off over all the surrounding hills." The houses (ofter disparaged as "
McMansions") are also criticised for spoiling countryside scenery:
Monaghan County Council in 2013 declared that "The Council will resist development that would create or extend ribbon development."
Tipperary County Council and many other councils have adopted similar policies. Recently, in places such as Flanders, Belgium, regional
zoning policy has resulted in ribbon development patterns. Various spatial policies embedded in these plans help predict where ribbon developments may occur and at what rate. == Criticisms ==