Employment effects of transport infrastructure

This chapter focuses on the effects of job accessibility on labor market outcomes. According to the spatial mismatch hypothesis, physical disconnection from jobs may lead to adverse labor market results. After reviewing the theoretical background underlying this hypothesis, the chapter discusses the requirements to measure job accessibility and presents the main challenges related to the use of econometric methods in this context. Most available empirical evidence finds that transport infrastructure that increases accessibility may improve labor market outcomes, with higher effects for less skilled individuals with weaker labor attachment. Additionally, both car availability and public transport connectivity play a role in improving accessibility, but their impacts also depend on specific groups. The results have implications for transport policy.