The role of accessibility in residential land values: what influence of railway stations in medium-and low-density areas?

In this empirical article, we seek to reveal the effect of accessibility to passenger railway stations in land capitalization. The stakes are crucial, as urban development in many OECD countries has been built around the individual car, favoring sprawled cities. The proximity to a railway station may thus be sought by households engaged in a land acquisition for residential purposes. The method we used in this article consists of estimating the effects of accessibility to passenger train stations on land prices in the peri-urban and isolated areas of the Loire-Atlantique Département, France. Data on land prices come from the Perval database for transactions recorded in 2012 in both the suburban ring of Nantes (431 observations selected) and in isolated municipalities of the Loire-Atlantique Départment (395 observations retained). The database integrates land attributes: surface area, status as for the viabilisation, presence of constructions to demolish ...To constitute our database, contextual variables likely to be capitalized in land prices were quantified as well. Three regression models were estimated afterwards, all adjusted to intrinsic and contextual variables. At first, we wanted to test the assumption according to which the function between the distance to the nearest station and the prices would be decreasing. Thus, a generalized additive model (GAM) has been produced. This type of nonparametric model makes it possible to estimate nonlinear functions in a multiple regression. In a second step, the average effect of this distance was revealed through a global log-linear model. Finally, we explored the possible spatial heterogeneity of the relationship between distance to the nearest station and land price using a geographically weighted regression (GWR). The underlying assumption is that this relationship is likely to vary depending on local contexts, including the attractiveness of the municipality of the train station, as well as human flows in this station. Our recommendations support decisions made in the development of local mobility. The results concerning the significant radius of influence of a train station should help decision-makers to make these latter evolve into multimodal exchange poles. In the absence of significant influence of the station considered, a broad incentive to carpooling practices should be driven by local authorities. The range of our results regarding the types of territory considered also prepares for tomorrow's autonomous mobility for "last-mile trips" towards train stations, a solution envisaged by many French local authorities in various types of areas.