They fanned out to the suburbs a half century ago -- young families drawn by open land and new neighborhoods that were separated from the congestion of the city. They built stretches of homes, erected schools and separated their living spaces from the factories and office buildings and retail centers. That suburban layout has been popular for decades, but aging Michiganders might find that the same sprawl will make them homebound once they can no longer drive, experts say. "Southeast Michigan is auto-dependent. It's in our DNA," said Robin Boyle, chairman of Wayne State University's Department of Urban Studies and Planning. "People are aging in place in this model of the suburban home that's dependent on the Buick leaving the house every morning."

Read more at the Detroit Free Press
http://www.freep.com/article/20101004/NEWS06/10040318/0/NEWS06/Those-who-sprawled-may-be-in-trouble