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A Positive Theory of Network Connectivity

Author

Listed:
  • David Levinson
  • Arthur Huang

    (Nexus (Networks, Economics, and Urban Systems) Research Group, Department of Civil Engineering, University of Minnesota)

Abstract

This paper develops a positive theory of network connectivity, seeking to explain the micro-foundations of alternative network topologies as the result of self-interested actors. By building roads, landowners hope to increase their parcelsÕ accessibility and economic value. A simulation model is performed on a grid-like land use layer with a downtown in the center, whose structure resembles the early form of many Midwestern and Western (US) cities. The topological attributes for the networks are evaluated. This research posits that road networks experience an evolutionary process where a tree-like structure first emerges around the centered parcel before the network pushes outward to the periphery. In addition, road network topology undergoes clear phase changes as the economic values of parcels vary. The results demonstrate that even without a centralized authority, road networks have the property of self-organization and evolution, and, that in the absence of intervention, the tree-like or web-like nature of networks is a result of the underlying economics.

Suggested Citation

  • David Levinson & Arthur Huang, 2010. "A Positive Theory of Network Connectivity," Working Papers 000084, University of Minnesota: Nexus Research Group.
    • Handle: RePEc:nex:wpaper:theoryofconnectivity
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/11299/180024
    File Function: Second version, 2012
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Paul Anderson & David Levinson & Pavithra Parthasarathi, 2011. "Accessibility Futures," Working Papers 000088, University of Minnesota: Nexus Research Group.
    2. Ottensmann, John R. & Lindsey, Greg, 2008. "A Use-Based Measure of Accessibility to Linear Features to Predict Urban Trail Use," The Journal of Transport and Land Use, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, vol. 1(1), pages 41-63.
    3. Arthur, W Brian, 1989. "Competing Technologies, Increasing Returns, and Lock-In by Historical Events," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 99(394), pages 116-131, March.
    4. Feng Xie & David Levinson, 2010. "How streetcars shaped suburbanization: a Granger causality analysis of land use and transit in the Twin Cities," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 10(3), pages 453-470, May.
    5. Arthur Huang & David Levinson, 2011. "Why Retailers Cluster: An Agent Model of Location Choice on Supply Chains," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 38(1), pages 82-94, February.
    6. Scott, Darren M. & Horner, Mark W., 2008. "Examining The Role of Urban Form In Shaping People’s Accessibility to Opportunities: An Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis," The Journal of Transport and Land Use, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, vol. 1(2), pages 89-119.
    7. Jacobson, Justin & Forsyth, Ann, 2008. "Seven American TODs: Good Practices for Urban Design in Transit-Oriented Development Projects," The Journal of Transport and Land Use, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, vol. 1(2), pages 51-88.
    8. Yang, Hai, 1998. "Multiple equilibrium behaviors and advanced traveler information systems with endogenous market penetration," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 205-218, April.
    9. Stanley Wasserman & Philippa Pattison, 1996. "Logit models and logistic regressions for social networks: I. An introduction to Markov graphs andp," Psychometrika, Springer;The Psychometric Society, vol. 61(3), pages 401-425, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. David Levinson, 2012. "Network Structure and City Size," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 7(1), pages 1-11, January.
    2. Robert Ogie & Tomas Holderness & Michelle Dunbar & Etienne Turpin, 2017. "Spatio-topological network analysis of hydrological infrastructure as a decision support tool for flood mitigation in coastal mega-cities," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 44(4), pages 718-739, July.
    3. Boeing, Geoff, 2017. "Methods and Measures for Analyzing Complex Street Networks and Urban Form," SocArXiv 93h82, Center for Open Science.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    road network; land parcel; network evolution; network growth; phase change; centrality measures; degree centrality; closeness centrality; betweenness centrality; network structure; treeness; circuitness; topology;
    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
    • R48 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Government Pricing and Policy
    • R53 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Regional Government Analysis - - - Public Facility Location Analysis; Public Investment and Capital Stock

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