Questions in Transportation: Part One
Question One: Why do rich people commute longer distances than poor people, after all they have a higher value of time (and time is the scarcest of all commodities).
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Question One: Why do rich people commute longer distances than poor people, after all they have a higher value of time (and time is the scarcest of all commodities).
Comments
This question became a box in Planning for Place and Plexus.
One possible explanation not raised there is that the wealthy have a disproportionately greater preference for spatial amenities. I.e. while for the wealthy time may be valued 2 or 4 times those of lower incomes, a preference for space, or nearness to parks, or other amenities found farther from the city center may be valued at 4 to 8 times as important as it is for lower income individuals, thus creating a propensity to commute longer distances.
Posted by: David Levinson | July 2, 2008 03:39 PM