Exploring the polycentric city with multi-worker households: An agent-based microeconomic model

Authored by Pablo Jensen, Remi Lemoy, Charles Raux

Date Published: 2017

DOI: 10.1016/j.compenvurbsys.2016.10.008

Sponsors: French Ministries

Platforms: No platforms listed

Model Documentation: Other Narrative Pseudocode Mathematical description

Model Code URLs: Model code not found

Abstract

We propose an agent-based dynamics which leads an urban system to the standard equilibrium of the Alonso, Muth, Mills (AMM) framework. Starting for instance from a random initialization, agents move and bid for land, performing a kind of local search and finally leading the system to equilibrium rent, density and land use. Agreement with continuous analytical results is limited only by the discreteness of simulations. We then study polycentrism in cities with this tool. Two job centers are introduced, and the economic, social and environmental outcomes of various polycentric spatial structures are presented. We also introduce two-worker households whose partners may work in different job centers. When various two-worker households are mixed, polycentrism is desirable, as long as the centers are not too distant from each other. The environmental outcome is also positive, but housing surfaces.increase. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Tags
Agent-based model Land-use change Heterogeneity residential segregation location choice Cities Discrete Metropolitan-area Urban spatial structure Urban economics Polycentric city Two-worker households Decentralized employment Equilibrium-model Configurations