earticle

영어

This study aims to statistically test the effect of subway accessibility on the formation and growth of employment subcenters in the Seoul metropolitan area (SMA) using the ‘jipgyegu’ dataset from the Korea Statistical Office. To this end, subway lines are divided into two types: lines built before 2000 (existing subway) and after 2000 (new subway). Subway catchment area is defined as the area within 600 meters of these subway stations. The analysis findings are summarized as follows. First, due to the expansion of the subway network over the 18 years, subway accessibility has significantly improved by about 40% for subcenters and 51% for non-employment centers. Second, both existing and new subway stations show similar gradients of employment density, especially within 600-800m, showing a tendency of firm location within subway catchment areas that can be accessed by foot. Third, the statistical analysis results show that the odds ratio of the existing subway catchment area to belong to the CBD and subcenters was 17.24 and 2.57, respectively, indicating that the existing subway catchment area made a contribution to the growth of the CBD and subcenter formation. On the other hand, the odds ratio of the new subway catchment area to belong to subcenters is about three times, implying that subway expansion has contributed to the formation and growth of the suburban subcenters.