Transit-Induced Gentrification and Neighborhood Upgrading in the United States

Abstract

Studies noticed that the United States new high-quality transit might trigger or accelerate neighborhood upgrading (transit-induced upgrading [TIU]), especially gentrification in less-affluent neighborhoods (transit-induced gentrification [TIG]), but current evidence was not conclusive. With a quasi-experimental design, this study confirms that TIG is likely but not inevitable and that TIU in affluent neighborhoods is less likely. Results also show that rail is more likely to induce gentrification than Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and that TIG is more evident over long term than over short term for rail-served neighborhoods. These findings thus imply that the BRT could help sustain the transit service to the most vulnerable.