TRANSIT AND URBAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: HOW CITIES COULD USE TRANSIT AS A DEVELOPMENT TOOL; WHY THEY DON'T; WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT

Transit has been used as a lever to influence private investment decisions in several large scale real estate projects. Recent examples are the federally funded downtown people mover demonstration program, the Urban Mass Transportation Administration's recent policy of linking its large scale transit investments to comparable commitments of private capital in several major cities, and the Joint Development Marketplace. Understanding transit's use as a development tool requires analysis at the level of individual projects. Joint development implies the multiple use of transport corridors and stations for both real estate and transit. The practical implications of public transit investment and the need for evaluation for a private investment perspective are noted. Systems planning, route alignment and station location, land acquisition and development strategy, station design and area design, requirements for real estate development, market research and development programming are all briefly considered. Comments are made on financial and economic feasibility analyses. It is noted that the prospects for transit station area development are good provided that public officials implement the kinds of land use and development decisions that support taxpayer investment in transit by deploying these improvements as tools for urban economic development.