MIDDLETON, Wis. -- A national proponent of an alternative to so-called "Smart Growth" brought his message to Dane County Monday.

Randal O'Toole spoke to a group in Middleton about everything from land use to light rail.

O'Toole, director of the American Dream Coalition, argues against many commonly held smart-growth trends in transportation and land use. He cites Los Angeles as an example of a city that's spent millions on transit, but he says it still doesn't work because jobs are not just in the downtown area.

"When you've got that kind of job, distribution transit is not going to work," O'Toole said. "In other words, transit is only going to work in pedestrian cities. It doesn't even work in street car cities."

Dane County Board member and Sierra Club spokesman Brett Hulsey disagrees.

"We can put commuter trains or electric trains on there to help take some of those buses and cars off University Avenue -- clean up the air and cut congestion," he said.

Hulsey said he supports light rail and says it can be done for a fraction of the cost of expanding Verona Road.

Learn more about Dane County planning efforts, at DanePlan.org.

Read O'Toole's article: Rail Transit Doesn't Work