Housing and Transportation: The Relationship between Residential Location, Local Retail Economies, and Commutes of Low-Income Families in Mexico City

Abstract

This paper provides a new perspective on the trade-offs between housing location and transportation in Mexico City. Fieldwork provides detailed, community-level information on residents’ commutes across two neighborhoods that differ in their proximity to the urban core, and the consolidation of local retail economies. After controlling for household income, a residence in the peripheral housing development of Los Alamos increases commute times by 114 to 139 percent when compared with the informal community of Isidro Fabela in Mexico City. Informal workers spend 42 percent less time commuting than formal workers because they work in businesses within their local retail economy.