Residential Segregation at Physical Neighborhood Boundaries

Kenneth Whaley ()
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Kenneth Whaley: University of South Florida

Journal of Economics, Race, and Policy, 2024, vol. 7, issue 3, No 1, 153 pages

Abstract: Abstract Train tracks delineate neighborhoods and serve as landmarks in the urban landscape. This paper sheds light on historic railroad placement as a predictor of contemporary segregation, using a digitized map of Texas railroads circa 1911 to compare Census block groups separated by train tracks today. Using a boundary discontinuity design, I document an unconditional house price premium of 17% to live on the high-income side of the tracks. Given that local price differences reflect the valuation of amenity differences, I show that train tracks cause race and income segregation, independent of settings where planners use them to draw administrative boundaries. In the case of schools, I find that elementary students zoned to the same school can live in remarkably different neighborhood environments.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1007/s41996-024-00144-4

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