Concentration versus re-matching? Evidence about the locational effects of commuting costs

Boehm, Michael J. (2013) Concentration versus re-matching? Evidence about the locational effects of commuting costs. CEP Discussion Papers (CEPDP1207). London School of Economics and Political Science. Centre for Economic Performance, London, UK.

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Abstract

Using administrative employer-employee data from Germany, I exploit two reductions of tax breaks for commuting in 2003/4 and 2006/7 to estimate commuting costs’ effect on the decision to switch job and move house. Standard theory predicts that higher commuting costs should lead to increased concentration in urban centers. However, I find that re-matching of existing jobs and houses to reduce commuting distances is much more prevalent in the data. With these estimates I calculate the effect of a complete abolition of the tax breaks on overall travel distance, fuel usage, greenhouse gas emissions, the tax base, and the de-population of the countryside.

Item Type:	Monograph (Discussion Paper)
Official URL:	http://cep.lse.ac.uk/_new/publications/series.asp?...
Additional Information:	© 2013 The Author
Divisions:	Centre for Economic Performance
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor H Social Sciences > HJ Public Finance
JEL classification:	J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J6 - Mobility, Unemployment, and Vacancies > J61 - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J6 - Mobility, Unemployment, and Vacancies > J68 - Public Policy Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q4 - Energy > Q48 - Government Policy Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q5 - Environmental Economics > Q58 - Government Policy R - Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics > R0 - General > R00 - General
Date Deposited:	08 Aug 2013 09:15
Last Modified:	15 Sep 2023 23:29
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/51542

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