Modelling changes in accessibility and property values associated with the King Street Transit Priority Corridor project in Toronto

Abstract

Despite several decades of research, the relationship between transit accessibility and land values remains unclear. In practice, most research has focused on simple measures of proximity that, while easy to understand, fail to capture the potential for interaction using the transit network. Through the example of the King Street Transit Priority Corridor project, this research examines how transit accessibility, and changes in access over time that result from streetcar service upgrades, are capitalized into condominium prices in Toronto, Canada. Methodological and applied contributions include calculating streetcar travel time differences using disaggregate vehicle tracking data, calculating transit accessibility using a gravity-based measure with a calibrated impedance function, accounting for variations in accessibility over the course of a day as well as changes over time, incorporating measures of access to local amenities, transforming 2D transaction information to a 3D format, and specifying 4D spatio-temporal weights. Longitudinal model results indicate that transit accessibility is a significant determinant of condominium prices. While the service upgrades did not dramatically increase accessibility levels and the implicit value of accessibility did not change over time, panel model results find that condominium property prices appreciated by about 2.7% more on average in the King Street streetcar corridor relative to the Sheppard subway control after the introduction of the priority corridor pilot. This result suggests the corridor on the whole may have became more attractive relative to Sheppard in the pilot phase.