The impact of anticipated transportation improvement on land values in Chicago's southwest transit corridor

The study estimates to what extent changes in residential land values in Chicago's Southwest Transit Corridor between 1980 (about four years before the funding of the line) and 1990 (about three years before the opening of the line) could be attributed to the anticipation of the rapid transit improvement.;The basic research design is the "before" and "after" methodology involving the use of multiple regressions and diagnostic checking for outliers and for collinearity. Land value samples for 1980 and 1990 were taken from Olcott's Land Values Book of Chicago & Suburbs and were regressed on several accessibility and socio-economic variables. The study was designed so that detailed analyses of land value changes before the announcement and funding approval of the transportation improvement and before the completion of its construction would be carried out.;The results of the study indicate that the hypothesis of no significant difference in the impact of anticipation of transit improvement on changes in land values in the corridor between 1980 and 1990 could not be strongly rejected. The results also show that residential land values decreased away from the stations and residents would be willing to pay a premium to live closer to the stations because of reasons related to easier accessibility. Furthermore, study findings support the notion that residential land users in the corridor would like to pay less for sites in proximity to the line because of the negative externality of ambient noise and other related nuisances and that distance to the Loop, population density, percentage of black population and, to a lesser extent, distance to industrial locations, and distance to parks and schools, were important determinants of land values in the corridor.;The study makes policy recommendations for suchlike improvement projects in the region.;The area of study is the southwest side of Chicago which had been one of the areas of Chicago insufficiently served by rapid transit, commuter rail or exclusive bus lanes.