Essays on Environmental, Urban, and Transportation EconomicsWANG, YUCHENG (2024) Essays on Environmental, Urban, and Transportation Economics. Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh. (Unpublished) This is the latest version of this item.
AbstractOn-road transportation is one of the most important sources of urban greenhouse gas emissions and local pollution. This dissertation consists of three essays that explore the efficiency and distributional effects of policies in alleviating emissions from the urban transportation sector. I examine three policies in each chapter: electric vehicles (EVs), reformulated gasoline, and public transportation. Chapter 1 studies the distribution of environmental benefits from EV across space. I develop a structural model of the U.S. auto market and use data from California to study household decisions on EV adoption across multiple vehicles and trip-specific vehicle selection. Combining the model-predicted probability of EV driving with simulated optimal travel routes, I construct a measure of the cumulative EV mileage at a highly granular geographic level. I show that higher-income communities receive more benefits; however, this disparity is less pronounced than EV adoption. I compare the EV purchasing subsidies with charging station investments and find that investment in charging infrastructures generates more environmental benefits and delivers a more equitable distribution. Chapter 2 investigates the impact of gasoline content regulation on consumer demand in China. The empirical design takes advantage of the unique market structure and policy-induced changes in gasoline formulation. Using detailed gas station-level data, I find that consumers respond positively to standard upgrades and substitute higher-emission gasoline for lower-emission ones. I present evidence to suggest that the effects are driven by the preference for the higher environmental value of the new gasoline and discuss the policy implications. Chapter 3 compares the impacts of expanding the subway network with revising subway prices in the context of Beijing, China. I find that both subway expansion and the fare change significantly impact gasoline consumption in the short run. However, the effect of subway expansion is larger and more durable. A cost-benefit calculation shows that expanding the subway reduces driving more cost-effectively than fare changes. Share
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