ABSTRACT
RESEARCH PAPER: The Hiawatha Line: Social and Economic Implications of Light
Rail Transit in Minneapolis, MN on Single-Family Dwellings
STUDENT: Robert Harold Wertman
DEGREE: Master of Urban and Regional Planning
COLLEGE: College of Architecture and Planning
DATE: May, 2013
PAGES: 68
This study has presented a detailed analysis of the social and economic impacts of
light rail transit in Minneapolis, MN. Using ordinary least squares regression, analysis
indicated that there was no observable proximity impact between a single-family
dwelling unit’s assigned neighborhood composite socioeconomic index value and light
rail transit stations. Analysis did reveal that there was a significant depreciating effect on
the assigned neighborhood composite socioeconomic index value as a result of proximity
to limited-access highway facilities. Using hedonic regression, this research found a
significant positive impact on a single-family dwelling unit’s total estimated value within
0.50 miles of a transit station. This positive impact was found to increase between 2005
and 2010. The findings from this research have indicated that the real-estate market, en
mass, has placed value on proximity to light rail transit.