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One for the Road: Public Transportation, Alcohol Consumption, and Intoxicated Driving

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  • C. Kirabo Jackson
  • Emily Greene Owens

Abstract

We exploit arguably exogenous train schedule changes in Washington DC to investigate the relationship between public transportation provision, the risky decision to consume alcohol, and the criminal decision to engage in alcohol-impaired driving. Using a triple differences strategy, we provide evidence that overall there was little effect on DUI arrests, alcohol related fatal traffic and alcohol related arrests. However, we find that these overall effects mask considerable heterogeneity across geographic areas and spatial shifting. Specifically, we find that areas close to bars that are within walking distance to Metro stations experience increases in alcohol related arrests and decreases in DUI arrests.

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  • C. Kirabo Jackson & Emily Greene Owens, 2010. "One for the Road: Public Transportation, Alcohol Consumption, and Intoxicated Driving," NBER Working Papers 15872, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15872
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • R49 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Other

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