Is it expensive to be poor? Public transport in Sweden
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Is it expensive to be poor? Public transport in Sweden Anders Bondemark1,2,3 · Henrik Andersson4 · Anders Wretstrand2,3 · Karin Brundell‑Freij2,3,5
© The Author(s) 2020
Abstract One of the reasons to subsidise public transport is to improve the mobility of low-income groups by providing affordable public transport; however, the literature describes a situation whereby those with a low income are unable to afford the cheapest tickets per trip, i.e. travelcards, as they usually require a considerable up-front cost. In this study, we use a large dataset from the Swedish National Travel Survey to investigate whether, and if so how, income explains monthly travelcard possession among individuals for whom this would have been the least expensive option. We find a robust positive relationship between income and travelcard possession among low-income earners, indicating that those with a low income pay more to use public transport than more affluent individuals. As the accessibility of low-income groups is an important motivation for public transport subsidies, the findings from this study have important policy implications. Keywords Fares · Public transport · Income · Liquidity constraints JEL Classification R48 · H41 · D12
Introduction The Economist (2015) and The Brookings Institution (2006) both report that, in many cases, it is expensive to be poor. Whether it is financial services or mobile phone subscriptions, low-income earners face higher prices than those with higher incomes. This phenomenon is not, however, limited to the examples above; it has also been reported in the context of public transport (Jones and Lucas 2012).
* Anders Bondemark [email protected] 1
The Swedish National Road and Transport Institute (VTI), Postal address: VTI, Box 55685, 102 15 Stockholm, Sweden
2
Lund University, Transport and Roads, Lund, Sweden
3
The Swedish Knowledge Centre for Public Transport, Lund, Sweden
4
Toulouse School of Economics, University of Toulouse Capitole, Toulouse, France
5
WSP Advisory, Malmö, Sweden
13
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Transportation
Aside from the strictly economic motives for subsidising public transport—such as economies of scale (Mohring 1972; Jansson 1979; Else 1985; Basso and Jara-Diaz 2010; Börjesson et al. 2017) and second-best pricing of externalities (Proost and van Dender 2008; Parry and Small 2009; Parry and Timilsina 2010)—social motives, such as providing accessibility for and improving the mobility of low-income earners more reliant on public transport (Glaeser et al. 2008) may be just as important to public transport authorities. For instance, an important policy objective for the public transport systems in London (Mayor of London 2018), Berlin (Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection 2018), New York (New York City Department of Transportation 2016), Los Angeles (Los Angeles Department of City Planning 2016), Vancouver (City of Vancouver 2012) and Chicago (Regional Transportation Authority 2017) is to provide equitable and affordable
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