How Does Improvement in Commuting Affect Employees? Evidence from a Natural Experiment

A-Tier
Journal: Review of Economics and Statistics
Year: 2024
Volume: 106
Issue: 1
Pages: 53-67

Authors (4)

Yao Lu (not in RePEc) Xinzheng Shi (not in RePEc) Jagadeesh Sivadasan (University of Michigan) Zhufeng Xu (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

1.005 = (α=2.01 / 4 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

We collect worker month-level panel data from two companies in Beijing for a two-year period before and after the opening of a nearby subway station, which significantly improved public transportation commutes for some workers. We find a significant difference-in-differences increase (12.6% of the standard deviation) in bonus pay, which is strongly correlated to worker-level performance measures, for affected workers relative to unaffected coworkers. We find no evidence that the improved performance is a result of affected workers spending extra time at the workplace. We find suggestive evidence for a relative decline in turnover, consistent with a gain in utility for affected workers.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:tpr:restat:v:106:y:2024:i:1:p:53-67
Journal Field
General
Author Count
4
Added to Database
2026-01-29