Do light rail systems reduce traffic externalities? Empirical evidence from mid-size european cities
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Date
2021
Subject Area
place - europe, place - urban, mode - tram/light rail, land use - impacts
Keywords
Light rail, congestion, travel time, pollution
Abstract
This paper examines the impact of urban light rail systems on congestion, travel time and pollution. Drawing on data from mid-size European cities, I estimate the impact of supply changes for the entire sample and applied a differences-in-differences analysis to a sample of cities that did not have rail systems in the initial year of the considered period. I find evidence that an increase in the supply of rail transport leads to less congestion, less travel time and less pollution. Furthermore, cities with a new rail system have on average 7% less congestion, 1% less travel time and 3% less pollution than cities with no rail systems. The results suggest that light rail systems have been successful in containing the negative externalities associated with car traffic in mid-size European cities.
Rights
Permission to publish the abstract has been given by Elsevier, copyright remains with them.
Recommended Citation
Fageda, X. (2021). Do light rail systems reduce traffic externalities? Empirical evidence from mid-size european cities. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, Vol. 92, 102731.
Comments
Transportation Research Part D Home Page:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/13619209