housing | National Center for Sustainable Transportation

Affordable Housing in Transit-Oriented Developments: Impacts on Driving and Policy Approaches

Research Product Type

White Paper

This paper studies the intersection of policies promoting affordable housing, transit-oriented developments (TODs), and the reduction of vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in metropolitan areas.

Assessing Transportation Impacts Using Vehicle Miles Traveled Rather Than Level of Service Can Incentivize Infill Development

Research Product Type

Policy Brief

This policy brief summarizes findings from a study of how the change to using VMT rather than LOS to measure land use projects' transportation impacts affects the approval process for urban development.

Caltrans Planning Horizons: Failing Malls - Optimizing Opportunities for Housing

California, like most of the country, was facing a transformation of retail before the COVID-19 epidemic. Increasing Internet shopping has ushered closing of anchor stores, such as Macy's, Sears, as well as the closure of many regional shopping malls, which have sizeable footprints, ranging from 40-100+ acres. The epidemic has accelerated these trends. This offers opportunities for redeveloping failing malls to address pressing needs in California, the need for housing, and for efficient transit provision for such redevelopments.

Can Affordable Housing in Transit-Oriented Development Help Solve California’s Housing Crisis while also Addressing Environmental Goals?

Research Product Type

Policy Brief

This policy brief examines findings of a study on driving impacts and policy approaches for affordable housing in Transit-Oriented Developments.

Comparing REAP and AHSC: State-defined versus regionally-defined funding strategies for affordable housing linked to multi-modal transport

Principal Investigator Elisa Barbour, Ph.D.
University of California, Davis

This research project will compare key elements of program design, administration, and projected benefits from the Regional Early Action Planning (REAP) and Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) programs, with the aim of considering how and whether a state-led strategy (AHSC) differs from regionally-designed strategies (through REAP), in furthering SB 375 goals through funding that allocated for similar specific purposes.

Project Status

In Progress

Cost of Building Affordable Housing in Major Cities Driven by Multiple Factors—But Not by Proximity to Transit

Research Product Type

Policy Brief

California taxpayers have supported more than a billion dollars of bonds to support affordable infill housing in neighborhoods with access to rail transit.

Do Rail Transit Stations Induce Displacement?

Research Product Type

Policy Brief

This policy brief summarizes research that tested whether or not rail transit developments cause an influx of high-income residents and an outflow of low-income residents near rail stations.

Does Placing Affordable Housing Near Rail Raise Development Costs? Evidence From California’s Four Largest Metropolitan Planning Organizations

Research Product Type

Associated Publication

Researchers tested whether placing affordable housing close to rail or in jobs-rich communities increases development costs on a per-unit basis.

Effect of New Rail Transit Stations on Income Distribution of Nearby Residential Moves

Research Product Type

Policy Brief

This policy brief summarizes findings from a project aimed at addressing the question of "Is new rail transit associated with displacement of low-income residents in near-rail neighborhoods?" To ad

Exploring Homeowners’ Openness to Building Accessory Dwelling Units in the Sacramento Metropolitan Area

Research Product Type

Associated Publication

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are once again a hot topic, as communities across the United States face housing shortages and rising housing costs. For planners and policymakers attempting to facilitate ADU development, it is important to understand the homeowners who do not yet have one.