regional economics
Green tax incentives for company cars result in welfare losses
We all want to make the world a better place. Hence governments aim to help consumers to buy cars with lower CO2 emissions. One way of doing this is by reducing taxes on cars. Ideally, such a tax is directly linked to the actual CO2 emissions of the car because then the polluter pays for…
Read MoreThe congestion charge in London and its effects on office rents
Modern cities enjoy many benefits connected to dense population and proximity of firms, but also face negative effects of agglomeration. In an urban context, external effects of traffic like noise and air pollution, or traffic congestion are some of the most significant issues for policy makers. Inefficiencies arising from congested roads have sparked economic research…
Read MoreShould we invest in renovating historic buildings?
In many countries, vast amounts of public money are invested to preserve historic buildings. In the Netherlands, for example, total public expenditures on renovation subsidies have been more than a billion euros since the 1970s.
Read MoreHousing values, gas extraction and earthquakes
The production of natural gas has grown rapidly in recent years. For example, in the United States the total shale gas production has increased with almost 900 percent in the last six years.
Read MoreShopping externalities: How shops benefit from each other without knowing
ff ‘Urban Dynamics – Analysing urban development dynamics and impacts’ was the title of the joint workshop organized by Spatial Economics U and Universitas Indonesia. The workshop was part of the WINNER Event (Week of Indonesia-Netherlands Education and Research)* and took place on October 27. * WINNER is an initiative by the Embassy of…
Read MoreCars have changed the way cities are organised. This column uses a sample of 123 cities in 57 countries to show that car ownership reduces the density of people and employment by allowing low-density expansion into the urban periphery. The findings have implications for cities in developing countries, where strong car ownership increases are expected…
Read MoreMeet our staff: Introducing Xiao Yu
Since the beginning of 2021, Xiao Yu joined the department of Spatial Economics. More specifically, she joined research project MOCOLODO (MObility during and after COrona LOckDOwn)*. ‘MOCOLODO represents the joint forces of interdisciplinary scientists to investigate the impacts of Covid-19 lockdowns. Our backgrounds are very diverse. We – the VU team, me, Erik Verhoef, and…
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