Can public investment in transport influence densification and land use? Evidence from the tramway of Dijon (France)[Comment l’investissement public dans les transports modifie-t-il la densification urbaine et l’usage du sol ? Enseignements du tramway de Dijon (France)]

Investment in public transport offers alternatives to reduce car dependency as well as many negative externalities associated with solo car usage. Yet, to be fully effective, public transport infrastructure must be able to facilitate economic activities and households' concentration. By increasing building density around stations and corridors, transport land-use feedback cycle can be engaged. The paper aims to evaluate the existence and extent of the causal relationship between public investment and densification, leveraging the implementation of a tramway service in the metropole of Dijon (France). The analysis decomposes the impact by direction as well as by the distance to corridor and city center. The results suggest that investment in public transport systems can significantly affect population and/or employment densification patterns, but that success is largely linked to the political willingness to stimulate densification through facilitating private investment.