As I predicted months ago when gas prices first started to rise, the suburbs are about to undergo a transformation. USA Today had a front page article about the 'burbs and the changes. In Arizona, they are doing what planners have been recommending for at least thirty years, which is to redesign suburbs as destinations, rather than just a place to sleep.
By "destination," that means adding stores, office buildings, sidewalks, parks, and new downtowns, so that residents don't have to drive thirty miles to and from work.
Small towns and rural communities with traditional downtown Main Streets can also capitalize on this trend converting Main Street buildings into office space--with fiber broadband services. Small towns like Galax, Virginia, better know for some of the country's best barbeque and the Fiddler's Convention, is doing just that as a partner in the Wired Road.