Universities and the Formation of Edge Cities: Evidence from China's Government-led University Town Construction

  • Yuan Wang
  • , Wei Tang*
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

This paper examines the localized effect of clusters of universities by exploiting a university town (UT) construction boom in China. We show that UT establishment has generated positive impact on local night-time light density and population concentration. The UT effect is much localized, and completely decays within 10 km. We emphasize the role of knowledge spillover and find that UT establishment has increased local human capital level. The number of high skill labors as well as high-tech firms has experienced higher growth in UT districts, as they benefited more from knowledge spillovers. Finally, we find that land prices in the UT have appreciated by 7%-12% using a unique dataset of land parcel transactions.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)245-265
Number of pages21
JournalPapers in Regional Science
Volume99
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Feb 2020

Keywords

  • edge city
  • knowledge spillover
  • localized effect
  • university

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Universities and the Formation of Edge Cities: Evidence from China's Government-led University Town Construction'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this