The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoning

Light rail transit (LRT) has become a popular strategy to improve accessibility and mobility in the United States. It has also been touted as a tool to spur urban growth, higher-density development, and revitalization in large, auto-dependent cities like Houston, Texas. Although traditionally known...

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Main Authors: Richard Lee, Ipek N Sener
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing 2017-03-01
Series:Journal of Transport and Land Use
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.jtlu.org/index.php/jtlu/article/view/926
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author Richard Lee
Ipek N Sener
author_facet Richard Lee
Ipek N Sener
author_sort Richard Lee
collection DOAJ
description Light rail transit (LRT) has become a popular strategy to improve accessibility and mobility in the United States. It has also been touted as a tool to spur urban growth, higher-density development, and revitalization in large, auto-dependent cities like Houston, Texas. Although traditionally known as sprawling and highly auto-oriented, Houston has greatly expanded its light rail system in recent years. The city is also unique in that it is by far the largest city in the United States without zoning ordinances. The city of Houston is used as a case study to examine land-use development around LRT stations. Analysis of parcel-level land-use data from 2005–2014 revealed a spike in commercial development along the original light rail corridor, approximately 4 to 10 years after its opening. Land-use development along the newer light rail corridors was more modest and not considerably different than the control corridors. Small changes in the levels of high-density residential housing and land-use mix near light rail stations indicated that efforts to encourage transit-oriented development have not yet had much effect.
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spelling doaj-art-4b3ea98bf01b4d86bfdbffd2eddae0dd2025-08-20T02:15:54ZengUniversity of Minnesota Libraries PublishingJournal of Transport and Land Use1938-78492017-03-0110110.5198/jtlu.2017.926261The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoningRichard LeeIpek N Sener0Texas A&M Transportation InstituteLight rail transit (LRT) has become a popular strategy to improve accessibility and mobility in the United States. It has also been touted as a tool to spur urban growth, higher-density development, and revitalization in large, auto-dependent cities like Houston, Texas. Although traditionally known as sprawling and highly auto-oriented, Houston has greatly expanded its light rail system in recent years. The city is also unique in that it is by far the largest city in the United States without zoning ordinances. The city of Houston is used as a case study to examine land-use development around LRT stations. Analysis of parcel-level land-use data from 2005–2014 revealed a spike in commercial development along the original light rail corridor, approximately 4 to 10 years after its opening. Land-use development along the newer light rail corridors was more modest and not considerably different than the control corridors. Small changes in the levels of high-density residential housing and land-use mix near light rail stations indicated that efforts to encourage transit-oriented development have not yet had much effect.https://www.jtlu.org/index.php/jtlu/article/view/926Light rail transit (LRT)land use developmentland use mixHoustonTexas
spellingShingle Richard Lee
Ipek N Sener
The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoning
Journal of Transport and Land Use
Light rail transit (LRT)
land use development
land use mix
Houston
Texas
title The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoning
title_full The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoning
title_fullStr The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoning
title_full_unstemmed The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoning
title_short The effect of light rail transit on land-use development in a city without zoning
title_sort effect of light rail transit on land use development in a city without zoning
topic Light rail transit (LRT)
land use development
land use mix
Houston
Texas
url https://www.jtlu.org/index.php/jtlu/article/view/926
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