Urban public transport investment and sociospatial development: the case of the Copenhagen Metro

Kristian Bothe and Christine Benna Skytt-Larsen examine Metro investment and socio-spatial impacts in Copenhagen, suggesting that residents within the catchment of the Metro have higher levels of education, lower unemployment rates and higher mean incomes than the reference group beyond. However, the largest differences are between neighbourhoods within transit catchment, reflecting the different socio-economic characteristics of each area. Amagerbro and Ørestad, for example, experience large increases in mean incomes. Much of the change in social composition of the station catchments is driven by differences between the stayers, in-movers and out-movers relative to the conditions before the Metro investment. Impacts of the Metro hence reflect a combination of the Metro investment, the local context, provision of urban amenities, type of housing provision and supporting urban policies.