Quantitative Urban Models: From Theory to Data
Journal of Economic Perspectives
vol. 37,
no. 2, Spring 2023
(pp. 75-98)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
Economic activity is highly unevenly distributed within cities, as reflected in the concentration of economic functions in specific locations, such as finance in the Square Mile in London. The extent to which this concentration reflects natural advantages versus agglomeration forces is central to a range of public policy issues, including the impact of local taxation and transport infrastructure improvements. This paper reviews recent quantitative urban models, which incorporate both differences in natural advantages and agglomeration forces, and can be taken directly to observed data on cities. We show that these models can be used to estimate the strength of agglomeration forces and evaluate the impact of transportation infrastructure improvements on welfare and the spatial distribution of economic activity.Citation
Redding, Stephen J. 2023. "Quantitative Urban Models: From Theory to Data." Journal of Economic Perspectives, 37 (2): 75-98. DOI: 10.1257/jep.37.2.75Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- N30 Economic History: Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy: General, International, or Comparative
- N70 Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, Technology, and Other Services: General, International, or Comparative
- N90 Regional and Urban History: General
- R11 Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
- R14 Land Use Patterns
- R23 Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics: Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population; Neighborhood Characteristics
- R41 Transportation: Demand, Supply, and Congestion; Travel Time; Safety and Accidents; Transportation Noise
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