Georges Tanguay and Ian Gingras give us “Gas Price Variation and Urban Sprawl: An Empirical Analysis of the 12 Largest Canadian Metropolitan Areas.” The results are about what you would expect—cheap gas inspired gasoline-intensive development patterns: “On average, a 1% increase in gas prices has caused: i) a 0.32% increase in the population living in the inner city and ii) a 1.28% decrease in low-density housing units.”
Conversely, higher incomes make gasoline more affordable and are associated with increased sprawl.
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