Wu, Wenjie (2013) Does better rail access improve homeowners’ happiness?: evidence based on micro surveys in Beijing. SERC Discussion Papers (SERCDP0134). Spatial Economics Research Centre (SERC), London School of Economics and Political Science, London, UK.
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Abstract
Development of urban transport infrastructures is a key policy focus---particularly in countries like China which have experienced fast urbanisation over the past decade. While existing studies provide marginal values for rail access on the real estate market, little is known about the consequences of local public goods improvements for homeowners’ subjective wellbeing using reported happiness data. This paper uses a difference-in-difference method to empirically measure the impact of rail access on homeowners’ happiness. My identification strategy takes advantage of micro happiness survey data conducted before-and-after the opening of new rail stations in 2008 Beijing. I deal with the potential concern about the endogeneity in sorting effects by focusing on “stayers” and using non-market (fang gai) housings with pre-determined locations. I find the significantly heterogeneity in the effects from better rail access on homeowners’ happiness with respect to different dimensions of residential environment. The welfare estimates suggest that better rail access provided substantial benefits to homeowners’ happiness, but these benefits have strong social-spatial differentiations. These findings add to the evidence that transport improvement has an important role to play in influencing local residents’ subjective wellbeing.
| Item Type: | Monograph (Discussion Paper) |
|---|---|
| Official URL: | http://www.spatialeconomics.ac.uk/SERC/publication... |
| Additional Information: | © 2014 The Author |
| Divisions: | Spatial Economics Research Centre |
| Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions H Social Sciences > HE Transportation and Communications H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform |
| JEL classification: | D - Microeconomics > D6 - Welfare Economics > D60 - General H - Public Economics > H4 - Publicly Provided Goods > H41 - Public Goods R - Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics > R4 - Transportation Systems > R41 - Transportation: Demand, Supply, and Congestion; Safety and Accidents; Transportation Noise |
| Date Deposited: | 16 Jul 2014 10:13 |
| Last Modified: | 13 Sep 2024 20:25 |
| Funders: | Economic and Social Research Council, Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS), Welsh Assembly Government |
| URI: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/57876 |
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