YTK:n Pitkän kurssin Tähtiluento: The Real Price of Access to Urban Transportation: Insights from Economics

Transport poverty refers to a situation where a person lacks adequate transport services for example access to different services and work, or the inability to pay for transport services. This can cause severe everyday problems for individuals to access general services such as work, school or healthcare and maintain social relationships. Transport poverty is often higher among people with low income, elderly, disabled or in areas that lack sufficient public transportation. Topics related to transportation poverty will be discussed in the webinar and it will be debated on how different economic decisions and means of control affect people's opportunities to function in society. Together with Aalto EE’s Timo Heikkinen discussing the topics will be Prottoy Akbar (Assistant Professor at Aalto University and Helsinki Graduate School of Economics), Taru Pakkanen (Special Advisor at Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom and Niko-Matti Ronikonmäki (Director of Unit at Ministry of Transport and Communication).

Keynote lecturer Prottoy Akbar will share his insight on the topic. Transportation lets us access desirable amenities and opportunities across space. To facilitate affordable and equal access for urban residents, cities offer public transportation at heavily subsidized flat fares. But while cities can cap the nominal price of getting on a bus, they have less control over the real price paid for access such as the time spent walking to the bus, sharing a crowded space, facing congestion on the road, and often paying higher housing costs to reside closer to the bus stop. Not everyone faces the same price or the same level of access to public transit services. In fact, economics teaches us that when we fix low fares for a limited supply of transit service, the excess demand is relieved via higher “shadow” prices in other dimensions. So, not everyone rides the bus: only those willing to pay more for nearby housing or willing to walk longer. We will look at an example of this unintended (shadow) price discrimination in the form of income disparities in access to public transit in US cities and consider its implications for the pricing and spatial allocation of urban public transportation services.

Prottoy Akbar is an applied economist with research interests in urban and transportation economics. His research explores topics related to residential segregation and inequality by race and income, the cost of urban mobility and the relationship between the two. He grew up in Dhaka (Bangladesh), completed PhD in the US at the University of Pittsburgh. Currently, he works as an Assistant Professor at Aalto University, jointly in the Department of Economics and Department of Built Environment, and at the Helsinki Graduate School of Economics.

YTK:n Pitkän kurssin Tähtiluento is produced in close cooperation with the Ministry of Transport and Communication. The webinar is part of the event series based on YTK:n Pitkä kurssi – yhdyskuntasuunnittelun asiantuntijaohjelma program (the program is held in Finnish). YTK:n Pitkä kurssi gives you wide-ranging knowledge of the field of urban planning and urban research. This year's program will start in August 2023 and registration is open until May 31, 2023.

The webinar is free of charge. We will share the webinar recording after the event with all registrees.

Registration

Register for the webinar by April 4, 2023. You will get instructions on how to join the webinar in a separate email.

Register

Are you interested in urban planning and urban research or transportation system management training programs?

Read more about YTK:n Pitkän kurssi and Liikennejärjestelmätyö Training Programs

Check all our events »