Dear Friends,

Some weeks back I posted a note on this forum with a brief statement of a
topic on which we wished to exchange ideas and information with others on
this list. In all, we received about twenty responses, the contents of which
I have followed up and integrated into a short report on this topic which
will be posted today on our new @Access - Sustainable Transportation Forum
at http://www.ecoplan.org/access <http://www.ecoplan.org/access> . You will
see it there under LINKS, where it has been placed for your handy use and
eventual comment.

I attach the draft summary for your eventual comments and reactions - and of
course we would be interested to continue these conversations either here on
this list or on the @Access Forum which exists for these purposes. Indeed,
the main finding of our enquiry, as you will see below, is that there may be
excellent reasons for giving this particular topic more time, thought and
work. Moreover, it offers a great training ground for young transport
planners, students of cities, and even investigative journalists.

Finally - might any of you be interested in participating in a voice
conference on this topic? If you go into @Access you will see that we have
a handy device for doing just this, along with a full set of instructions
which some of you may be interested in looking at. If there is any interest
at all, I thought that we might consider an informal session toward the end
of the day on Thursday the 12th - which would be at a time in which we could
be joined by any eventual North American colleagues.

I look forward to sharing what you have to say or suggest on this, and would
like to thank those of you who have already replied with your ideas and
input for your kindness in doing just that.


With all good wishes,

Eric Britton

ecopl@n ___ technology, economy, society ___
Le Frene, 8/10 rue Joseph Bara, 75006 Paris, France
[log in to unmask] URL www.ecoplan.org
Tel: +331.4326.1323 Videoconference +331.4441.6340 (1-4)
24 hour fax/voicemail hotline: In Europe +331 5301 2896
In North America +1 888 522 6419 (toll free)


LINKING TRANSPORTATION INVESTMENTS TO LAND VALUES


Summary:

* Robert Ayres, a professor of environment and management at INSEAD,
asked Eric Britton of ecopl@n <mailto:ecopl@n> if useful information might
be found via the Internet on a specific subject: the availability of data
drawn from experience showing eventual relationships between specific
transportation investments and projects, and real estate values in the place
where they were supposed to have beneficial impacts. (The following thirty
page report recapitulates the result of this search.)
* The main finding of this brief international electronic inquiry is
that there does not appear to be very much around by way of solid data on
the topic.
* Around the world the idea of improving real estate values is often
given great play in the build up of a new transport project or investment,
but once the funds have been acquired and the project actually built, few
sponsors, agencies or places appear to make the effort to verify what has
actually taken place in that instance.
* It is understood that such analyses are not necessarily so easy to
do nor so clear in their findings, since a city is not a laboratory and the
conditions of ceteris paribus simply do not hold. That said, the means for
carrying our this sort of ex post analysis are not hard to come by, and
indeed it would be most useful for transportation researchers and policy
makers to have access to solid data on this subject.
* The actual technique of study however is likely to depend on a good
dose of detective work in each place, since much of the needed data will
have to be ferreted out fro non-published sources (real estate ads in
papers, interviews with key sources in that place, inspection of
transactions records, etc.).
* Solid international data on this subject could be highly useful,
including for making the case of the sort of "softer" transportation
projects and investments that so often can make a real difference in the
quality of life in a place (traffic calming, strategic parking, pedestrian
policies, public transport realignment, home zones, play streets and the
like).
* We do not know of the existence of any models that may have been
constructed to permit the easy manipulation and analysis of such project
data for planning or other purposes, but it is not hard to see that such a
model could be quite useful.
* We have opened up a special discussion forum on this topic which we
intend to maintain over the remainder of the year on the @Access -
Sustainable Transportation Forum at http://www.ecoplan.org/access
<http://www.ecoplan.org/access> , in an attempt to build on and extend these
first exchanges on a transportation matter which we consider to be in the
public interest. This first report is being posted there for use and
comment.