"Urban sprawl" refers to the <em>decentralization of the population</em> from the central part of the city towards the suburban areas. Such situation has been considered an issue since many people prefer to live far from the city due to <em>transportation improvements. </em>It is said to cause loss of open space, heavy traffic or traffic congestion and segregation of races.
Policies such as "building height requirements" <em>can affect urban sprawl</em>. It means a fewer number of people will be able to live in the building, thereby <u>lowering the population density</u>. This becomes an obstacles to a more compact city, thus it can affect the urban sprawl.
