Motorway network effects on local population and employment

The case of Denmark

Abstract

The effects of proximity to the motorway system on local employment and population levels is analyzed in Denmark from 1981 to 2013 by the use of regression models correlating the change in the distance of Danish municipalities to the motorway network and their increase or reduction in population, employment and workplaces. The conclusion is that there is an indication of a small, but significant negative impact on local levels of population, employment and workplaces. Thus, motorways seem to support a centralization process rather than sustaining local economic activity.