This planning tradition became less prevalent after the 1970s, which resulted in considerably less dense outward development in the municipalities outside the central city. While provincial and city land use plans continued to stress compact development and public transit use, the realities in many parts of the Toronto region were urban sprawl and high car use, as a result of the application of many land use instruments, such as zoning by-laws and building codes, that did not support compact, higher-density development.