ABSTRACT

This article uses eviction data to test the transit-induced displacement hypothesis—that the placement of new transit stations will lead to elevated property values, gentrification, and displacement. We use a case study of four cities in the United States that built or extended rail lines between 2005 and 2009: Newark, New Jersey; San Diego, California; Seattle, Washington; and St. Louis, Missouri. We employ a combination of propensity score matching and difference-in-differences modeling to compare eviction filing rates in gentrifiable neighborhoods near new transit stations with a set of similar neighborhoods not close to the station. We find very limited evidence that new transit neighborhoods experienced heightened rates of evictions compared with the controls. In three of the four cities, the effect of the opening of the station on eviction rates was insignificant. Eviction rates did spike in St. Louis immediately following the opening of the line, but this time period also coincided with the financial crisis.