Citation

Discussion Paper Details

Please find the details for DP12437 in an easy to copy and paste format below:

Full Details   |   Bibliographic Reference

Full Details

Title: Highways, Market Access, and Spatial Sorting

Author(s): Stephan Fretz, Raphaël Parchet and Frédéric Robert-Nicoud

Publication Date: November 2017

Keyword(s): Highway, Income sorting, market access and Transportation

Programme Area(s): International Trade and Regional Economics

Abstract: We design a parsimonious spatial equilibrium model featuring workers embodied with heterogeneous skills and nonhomothetic preferences. In equilibrium, locations with improved commuting access become relatively more attractive to the highskilled, high-income earners. We then empirically analyze the effects of the construction of the Swiss highway network between 1960 and 2010 on the distribution of income at the local level, as well as on employment and commuting by education level. We find that the advent of a new highway access within 10km led to a long-term 23% increase in the share of high-income taxpayers and a 7% decrease in the share of low-income taxpayers. Highways also contributed to job and residential urban sprawl.

For full details and related downloads, please visit: https://cepr.org/active/publications/discussion_papers/dp.php?dpno=12437

Bibliographic Reference

Fretz, S, Parchet, R and Robert-Nicoud, F. 2017. 'Highways, Market Access, and Spatial Sorting'. London, Centre for Economic Policy Research. https://cepr.org/active/publications/discussion_papers/dp.php?dpno=12437