IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/idb/brikps/7332.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Growing Resources for Growing Cities: Density and the Cost of Municipal Public Services in Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, and Mexico

Author

Listed:
  • Libertun de Duren, Nora Ruth
  • Guerrero Compeán, Roberto

Abstract

This paper finds that per capita municipal spending on public services is strongly and non-linearly correlated to urban population density. Optimal expenditure levels for municipal services are achieved when densities are close to 9,000 residents per square kilometer. In this study of approximately 8,600 municipalities in Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, and Mexico, 85 percent are below this ideal density level. This analysis provides strong policy support for densification, particularly for medium-sized cities in developing countries, which are currently absorbing most of the world's urban population growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Libertun de Duren, Nora Ruth & Guerrero Compeán, Roberto, 2015. "Growing Resources for Growing Cities: Density and the Cost of Municipal Public Services in Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, and Mexico," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 7332, Inter-American Development Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:idb:brikps:7332
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://publications.iadb.org/publications/english/document/Growing-Resources-for-Growing-Cities-Density-and-the-Cost-of-Municipal-Public-Services-in-Brazil-Chile-Ecuador-and-Mexico.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Burchell, R.W. & Mukherji, S., 2003. "Conventional Development Versus Managed Growth: The Costs of Sprawl," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 93(9), pages 1534-1540.
    2. Graziano Abrate & Fabrizio Erbetta & Giovanni Fraquelli & Davide Vannoni, 2012. "Size and Density Economies in Refuse Collection," Carlo Alberto Notebooks 274, Collegio Carlo Alberto.
    3. José Brakarz & Eduardo Rojas & Margarita Greene, 2002. "Cities for All: Recent Experiences with Neighborhood Upgrading Programs," IDB Publications (Books), Inter-American Development Bank, number 79342, February.
    4. Bergstrom, Theodore C & Goodman, Robert P, 1973. "Private Demands for Public Goods," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 63(3), pages 280-296, June.
    5. Inmaculada C. Álvarez & Ángel M. Prieto & José L. Zofío, 2014. "Cost Efficiency, Urban Patterns and Population Density When Providing Public Infrastructure: A Stochastic Frontier Approach," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(6), pages 1235-1258, June.
    6. Pierre-Philippe Combes & Gilles Duranton & Laurent Gobillon & Sébastien Roux, 2010. "Estimating Agglomeration Economies with History, Geology, and Worker Effects," NBER Chapters, in: Agglomeration Economics, pages 15-66, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Gaigné, Carl & Riou, Stéphane & Thisse, Jacques-François, 2012. "Are compact cities environmentally friendly?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 123-136.
    8. Stuart S. Rosenthal & William C. Strange, 2003. "Geography, Industrial Organization, and Agglomeration," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 85(2), pages 377-393, May.
    9. Carlino, Gerald A. & Chatterjee, Satyajit & Hunt, Robert M., 2007. "Urban density and the rate of invention," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(3), pages 389-419, May.
    10. Randall G. Holcombe & DeEdgra W. Williams, 2008. "The Impact of Population Density on Municipal Government Expenditures," Public Finance Review, , vol. 36(3), pages 359-373, May.
    11. Edward L. Glaeser & Joshua D. Gottlieb, 2009. "The Wealth of Cities: Agglomeration Economies and Spatial Equilibrium in the United States," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 47(4), pages 983-1028, December.
    12. Miriam Hortas-Rico & Albert Solé-Ollé, 2010. "Does Urban Sprawl Increase the Costs of Providing Local Public Services? Evidence from Spanish Municipalities," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 47(7), pages 1513-1540, June.
    13. Helen F. Ladd, 1992. "Population Growth, Density and the Costs of Providing Public Services," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 29(2), pages 273-295, April.
    14. World Bank, 2014. "World Development Indicators 2014," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 18237, December.
    15. Gaigné, Carl & Riou, Stéphane & Thisse, Jacques-François, 2012. "Are compact cities environmentally friendly?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 123-136.
    16. Carl Gaigné & Stéphane Riou & Jacques-François Thisse, 2012. "Are Compact Cities Environmentally (and Socially) Desirable ?," Cahiers de recherche CREATE 2012-4, CREATE.
    17. Edward L. Glaeser & Bruce Sacerdote, 1999. "Why Is There More Crime in Cities?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 107(S6), pages 225-258, December.
    18. repec:tur:wpapnw:9 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Henderson, Vernon, 2003. "The Urbanization Process and Economic Growth: The So-What Question," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 8(1), pages 47-71, March.
    20. Feler, Leo & Henderson, J. Vernon, 2011. "Exclusionary policies in urban development: Under-servicing migrant households in Brazilian cities," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(3), pages 253-272, May.
    21. Brakarz, José & Rojas, Eduardo & Greene, Margarita, 2002. "Cities for All: Recent Experiences with Neighborhood Upgrading Programs," IDB Publications (Books), Inter-American Development Bank, number 418.
    22. Wheaton, William C., 1998. "Land Use and Density in Cities with Congestion," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(2), pages 258-272, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Boussauw, Kobe & Steenberghen, Thérèse & Vermander, Marijke & Fransen, Koos & Wittemans, Kelly, 2023. "Urban sprawl and home-delivered services: An exploratory analysis of spatial variations of cost and quality in Flanders (Belgium)," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Nora Libertun de Duren & Roberto Guerrero Compeán, 2016. "Growing resources for growing cities: Density and the cost of municipal public services in Latin America," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 53(14), pages 3082-3107, November.
    2. Carozzi, Felipe & Roth, Sefi, 2023. "Dirty density: Air quality and the density of American cities," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    3. Larson, William & Yezer, Anthony, 2015. "The energy implications of city size and density," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 35-49.
    4. Wang, Jian & Sun, Furong & Lv, Kangjuan & Wang, Lisha, 2022. "Industrial agglomeration and firm energy intensity: How important is spatial proximity?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    5. Carozzi, Felipe & Roth, Sefi, 2023. "Dirty density: air quality and the density of American cities," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 117385, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Carl Gaigné & Jacques-François Thisse, 2013. "New Economic Geography and the City," Working Papers SMART 13-02, INRAE UMR SMART.
    7. Ahlfeldt, Gabriel M. & Pietrostefani, Elisabetta, 2019. "The economic effects of density: A synthesis," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 93-107.
    8. Stéphane De Cara & Anne Fournier & Carl Gaigné, 2011. "Feeding the cities and greenhouse gas emissions: a new economic geography approach," Working Papers 1109, Chaire Economie du climat.
    9. Blaudin de Thé, Camille & Carantino, Benjamin & Lafourcade, Miren, 2021. "The carbon ‘carprint’ of urbanization: New evidence from French cities," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    10. Borck, Rainald, 2016. "Will skyscrapers save the planet? Building height limits and urban greenhouse gas emissions," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 13-25.
    11. Kim, Jinwon, 2016. "Vehicle fuel-efficiency choices, emission externalities, and urban sprawl," Economics of Transportation, Elsevier, vol. 5(C), pages 24-36.
    12. Kakpo, Eliakim & Le-Gallo, Julie & Breuillé, Marie & Grivault, Camille, 2019. "Should French municipalities foster urban densification to reduce their expenditures?," MPRA Paper 94985, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Jun 2019.
    13. Romain Gaté, 2019. "Efficiency of road pricing schemes with endogenous workplace locations in a polycentric city," Working Papers halshs-02335766, HAL.
    14. Andini, Monica & de Blasio, Guido & Duranton, Gilles & Strange, William C., 2013. "Marshallian labour market pooling: Evidence from Italy," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(6), pages 1008-1022.
    15. Castells-Quintana, David & Dienesch, Elisa & Krause, Melanie, 2021. "Air pollution in an urban world: A global view on density, cities and emissions," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    16. Lewandowska Aleksandra & Piasecki Adam, 2019. "Selected aspects of water and sewage management in Poland in the context of sustainable urban development," Bulletin of Geography. Socio-economic Series, Sciendo, vol. 45(45), pages 149-157, September.
    17. Denant-Boemont, Laurent & Gaigné, Carl & Gaté, Romain, 2018. "Urban spatial structure, transport-related emissions and welfare," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 29-45.
    18. Miriam Hortas-Rico & Vicente Rios, 2020. "Is there an optimal size for local governments? A spatial panel data model approach," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 54(7), pages 958-973, July.
    19. Edward L. Glaeser & Bryce Millett Steinberg, 2017. "Transforming cities: does urbanization promote democratic change?," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(1), pages 58-68, January.
    20. Xinyue Hu & Han Yan & Deng Wang & Zhuoqun Zhao & Guoqin Zhang & Tao Lin & Hong Ye, 2020. "A Promotional Construction Approach for an Urban Three-Dimensional Compactness Model—Law-of-Gravitation-Based," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-10, August.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)
    • R58 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Regional Development Planning and Policy

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:idb:brikps:7332. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Felipe Herrera Library (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/iadbbus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.