Land Economics
Land economics and the infrastructure dividend
When governments invest in transport and services, land values respond. Understanding that uplift is central to good planning and fair value capture.
BR
Ben Robinson PhD
23 October 2026 · 1 min read
Land is fixed in supply and immovable, which makes its value unusually sensitive to what happens around it. New rail stations, roads, schools and hospitals all change the economics of nearby land.
The uplift question
Who captures the increase in value created by public investment? Landowners, developers, government — or some mix of all three?
Why it matters for projects
- Rezoning and infrastructure announcements can reprice land long before anything is built.
- Developer contributions and value capture levies change feasibility directly.
- Timing an acquisition relative to infrastructure delivery is often the biggest single driver of return.
Land economics gives us the tools to measure these effects with evidence rather than intuition, which is exactly what planners, investors and communities need.