ABSTRACT
The empiricists drew on a variety of precedents and adapted them to the new circumstances brought about by World War Two, its political consequences, the continued globalization of ideas, and technological changes. Dealing with the proliferation of vehicular traffic became an increasing urban design concern in the decades after World War Two as car ownership burgeoned. The strongest contrast in thinking of what are good worlds was between the garden city advocates and the urbanists. Each addressed the interests of specific groups of people: those who sought quiet, peaceful surroundings and those who enjoy living in diverse high-density urban environments. The empiricist urban design ideas of the first half of the twentieth century were set forth in a score of books and a handful of journal articles; the second half saw numerous publications.
