Date: July 1, 2024
Author(s): Pablo Fajgelbaum, Cecile Gaulbert, Nicole Gorton, Eduardo Morales, Edouard Schaal
Abstract
We study how political preferences shaped California’s High-Speed Rail (CHSR), a largetransportation project approved by referendum in 2008. Voters’ support responded significantly to the projected economic gains in their tract of residence, as measured by a quantitative model of high-speed rail matched to CHSR plans. Given this response, a revealed-preference approach comparing the proposed network with alternative designs identifies strong planner’s preferences for political support. The optimal politically-blind design would have placed the stations nearer to California’s dense metro areas, where it was harder to sway votes, thus increasing the projected economic gains.
About the Project
This project uses the California High Speed Rail (CHSR) project as a case study for analyzing the relative importance of economic versus political/ideological factors in shaping preferences for large transportation […]