The Political Economy of Urban Transport System Choice
36 Pages Posted: 16 Dec 2004
Date Written: October 2004
Abstract
This Paper analyzes the political economy of transport-system choice, with the goal of gaining an understanding of the forces involved in this important urban public policy decision. Transport systems pose a continuous trade-off between time and money cost, so that a city can choose a fast system with a high money cost per mile or a slower, cheaper system. The Paper compares the socially optimal transport system to the one chosen under the voting process, focusing on both homogeneous and heterogeneous cities, while considering different landownership arrangements. The analysis identifies a bias toward over-investment in transport quality in heterogeneous cities.
Keywords: Over-investment in transport quality, income heterogeneity, multiple transport systems
JEL Classification: H41, R42
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
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