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The local labour market effects of light rail transit

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  • Tyndall, Justin

Abstract

Many US cities have made large investments in light rail transit in order to improve commuting networks. I analyse the labour market effects of light rail in four US metros. I propose a new instrumental variable to overcome endogeneity in transit station location, enabling causal identification of neighbourhood effects. Light rail stations are found to drastically improve employment outcomes in the surrounding neighbourhood. To incorporate endogenous sorting by workers, I estimate a structural neighbourhood choice model. Light rail systems tend to raise rents in accessible locations, displacing lower skilled workers to isolated neighbourhoods, which reduces aggregate metropolitan employment in equilibrium.

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  • Tyndall, Justin, 2021. "The local labour market effects of light rail transit," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:juecon:v:124:y:2021:i:c:s0094119021000322
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jue.2021.103350
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    Cited by:

    1. Alex Chernoff & Andrea N. Craig, 2022. "Distributional And Housing Price Effects From Public Transit Investment: Evidence From Vancouver," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 63(1), pages 475-509, February.
    2. Flintz, Joschka, 2024. "The value of passenger rail access," Ruhr Economic Papers 1114, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    3. Justin Tyndall, 2024. "Predicting Rail Transit Impacts with Endogenous Worker Choice: Evidence from Oahu," Upjohn Working Papers 24-409, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    4. Beaudoin, Justin & Tyndall, Justin, 2023. "The effect of bus rapid transit on local home prices," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    5. Pablo Fajgelbaum & Cecile Gaubert & Nicole Gorton & Eduardo Morales Morales & Edouard Schaal, 2023. "Political preferences and the spatial distribution of infrastructure:evidence from California’s high-speed rail," Economics Working Papers 1866, Department of Economics and Business, Universitat Pompeu Fabra.
    6. Riukula, Krista & Väänänen, Touko, 2024. "Estimating the Labour Market Impacts of Transport Projects in Finland," ETLA Working Papers 120, The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Transportation; Transit; Residential choice; Neighbourhood change; Spatial mismatch;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J20 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - General
    • J60 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - General
    • R13 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - General Equilibrium and Welfare Economic Analysis of Regional Economies
    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population
    • R40 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - General
    • R58 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Regional Development Planning and Policy

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