A Network Lens on Social Costs: Demolishing a Historic Street for a New Subway Station

TL;DR

This paper examines the social costs of demolishing a historic street for a new subway station in Guangzhou, highlighting the loss of local social ties and the unequal travel benefits for residents.

Contribution

It introduces a network-based framework to measure social costs and analyze inequality in urban transportation infrastructure projects.

Findings

Demolition removes small businesses supporting local social ties.

The new station benefits travelers from other city areas more than local residents.

The study offers a methodology to assess social costs in urban infrastructure expansion.

Abstract

Urban redevelopment often involves a delicate balance between enhancing regional connectivity and preserving local social fabric. Through a case study in Guangzhou, China, we argue that demolishing a historic street to construct a new subway station shows competing interests between local government's priority to facilitate spatial connectivity and locals' priority to maintain a place for social interaction and memories. We measure the social costs of the new subway station through a network lens, focusing on the loss of social ties and memories and low travel benefits of the new station for the local populations. We find that 1) the demolition will remove many small businesses that support locals' daily activities, social ties, and memories, and 2) the new station reduces travel distance and increases route options for passengers from other areas of the city more than locals nearby the demolition site. Our results contribute to a network-based framework and methodology to understand and contest inequality in expanding transportation network infrastructure in cities.