103-0517-00L  Urban and Spatial Economics

SemesterSpring Semester 2020
LecturersR. H. van Nieuwkoop
Periodicityyearly recurring course
Language of instructionEnglish


AbstractThis course explores the economic factors which influence location decisions of households and firms, and it explores theories of how these decisions induce the formation of cities. The course will cover the neoclassical models of land use, concepts from the new economic geography, zoning, and transportation and traffic congestion.
ObjectiveThe objective of the course is to provide graduate students with an understanding of the economic factors which give rise to urban spatial structure and the models which have been employed to study these processes. The course aims to help students develop an appreciation for the use of economic models in both positive and normative frameworks. We will assess both the history of thought regarding the role of markets in creating urban development, and we will read about modern theories of externalities and economic factors which induce agglomeration. The final section of the course will focus on transportation problems in urban areas and the use of economic models to assess public policy measures to deal with congestion and associated externalities.
ContentOutline of Lectures

Topic 1: Why do cities exist?
Topic 2: The Basic Muth-Mills model
Topic 3: The New Economic Geography
Topic 4: Business demand for land and Von Thünen's model)
Topic 5: Urban spatial structure
Topic 6: Land use control
Topic 7: City size and city growth
Topic 8: Traffic externalities and congestion
Topic 9: Public transport
Topic 10: The housing crisis
LiteratureTextbook

o Urban Economics by Arthur O'Sullivan, McGraw-Hill.

Ancillary Texts

o Lectures on Urban Economics, K. Brückner, 2011, The MIT Press

o Cities, agglomeration and spatial equilibrium by E. L. Glaeser, 2008, Oxford University Press.

o A Companion to Urban Economics, Richard Arnott and Daniel McMillen (eds.), Blackwell, 2006.

o The new introduction to geographical economics, Steven Brakman, Harry Garretsen and Charles van Marrewijk, Cambridge.

o Urban transport economics, by K. A. Small and E. Verhoef, Routledge.