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Can public transportation reduce accidents? Evidence from the introduction of late-night buses in Israeli cities

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  • Lichtman-Sadot, Shirlee

Abstract

The notion that public transportation can mitigate accidents has been widely claimed, but to-date empirical evidence that supports this relationship in a causal manner is scarce. This paper presents results from difference-in-differences (DID) and triple differences (DDD) frameworks that exploit the introduction of late-night buses (night buses) into cities in Israel beginning in 2007. The preferred DDD specification utilizes spatial, temporal, and time-of-day variation in estimating the effect of night bus frequencies on accident outcomes. The results show a reduction in accidents involving young drivers in response to night buses, on the order of 37% in the mean metropolitan area served by night buses. Injuries resulting from these accidents also decrease by 24%. Results are robust to alternative DDD estimations, which utilize variation in the day of the week that night buses operate. Overall, the results suggest that public transportation - and in particular late-night public transportation - can entail substantial benefits in terms of road accident reductions.

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  • Lichtman-Sadot, Shirlee, 2019. "Can public transportation reduce accidents? Evidence from the introduction of late-night buses in Israeli cities," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 99-117.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:regeco:v:74:y:2019:i:c:p:99-117
    DOI: 10.1016/j.regsciurbeco.2018.11.009
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Public transportation; Road accidents; Risky behavior; Drunk driving;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R41 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Transportation: Demand, Supply, and Congestion; Travel Time; Safety and Accidents; Transportation Noise
    • R42 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Government and Private Investment Analysis; Road Maintenance; Transportation Planning
    • R58 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Regional Development Planning and Policy
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health

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