Much of the development fabric outside of downtown and the core neighborhoods is suburban in design with separated land uses. This is a result of typical pattern of zoning in America characterized by the segregation of land uses into specified geographic districts. This has been the predominant approach to development in High Point over the last several decades. As an alternative, mixed-use activity centers and corridors would provide opportunities for people to live and work in closer proximity to a wider variety of land uses.

An assessment of High Point’s transportation infrastructure shows significant gaps or deficiencies in the overall multimodal transportation network.

Based on meetings with local stakeholders and members of the public that participated in Open House Roadshows, there is a widespread sense that High Point has a high dependency on the car and getting around by other forms of transportation, such as bicycles, public transit, and walking is difficult if not impossible in many areas. Although High Point has a complete streets policy that aims to create streets that accommodate driving, walking, biking and transit use, facilities for modes other than driving are typically the first to be cut when budgets get tight.

Bike Lanes
High Point has approximately seven miles of bike lanes which are limited to a few streets near downtown. In comparison, the City of Greensboro has 62 miles of bike lanes with the goal of 77 miles by 2025.

Greenways
High Point has recently received grant money to expand the greenway system. Greenways and trails are often important components in the recreation system, but typically do not provide the same transportation benefits that multi-modal streets do.

Although car dependency inconveniences the people who might not want to drive, it severely limits the people who cannot drive or those that do not have access to a car from adequately getting to work or meeting daily needs, such as getting groceries, accessing medical services, etc.