Proximity, accessibility and choice

A new paper by Haugen et al.: Proximity, accessibility and choice: A matter of taste or condition? suggests that in Sweden, accessibility has increased between 1995 and 2005.

Drawing on a combination of register data and travel survey data, this research explores changes in the accessibility to different amenities for the Swedish population between 1995 and 2005, as well as the reasons behind the changes: redistribution of either amenities or the population. Overall, proximity has increased concerning most of the amenities during the period. However, despite decreasing ‘potential’ distances, actual travel distances are growing longer due to, for example, an increasing selectivity in preferences. An analysis of the acces- sibility development for service amenities shows that restructuring within the service sector is the main cause of the changes, and to a lesser extent population redistribution.

This is consistent with our results for the Twin Cities.