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LA-Plan: Virtual Co-Laboratory for Policy Analysis in the Greater L.A. Region
This multi-year project is funded through the University of California’s Multi-campus Research Program and Initiative (MRPI). LA-Plan seeks to develop a virtual (online) co-laboratory, aimed at revolutionizing spatial policy analysis for the Greater Los Angeles Region by making it possible for metropolitan planning organizations (MPO’s) and for urban, public policy, and environmental experts from the University of California system to collaborate productively using a best-practice microeconomic simulation model.
The core of the project is a dynamic, spatial, computable general equilibrium model of the Los Angeles regional economy that focuses on land use, transportation and environmental quality, RELU-TRAN L.A. The model is a variant of the RELU-TRAN (Regional Economy Land Use and TRANsportation) model developed by Alex Anas.
The first-ever virtual co-laboratory will be housed at UC-Riverside (host campus) and will synergize the expertise of UC-Riverside economists, demographers, and environmental engineers, with that of geographers from UC-Santa Barbara, urban and regional planners from UC-Berkeley, and possibly of experts from other UC campuses.
Economists, demographers, and environmental engineers at UCR will perform the bulk of the model design, calibration and econometric estimation. The UC-Santa Barbara geographers will provide the co-laboratory’s data architecture, mapping capabilities, geographic information interface, and a human-computer interface for diverse users to interact and collaborate on policy analyses online. Planning, public policy, and green development experts from UC-Berkeley will contribute to such policy areas as transit-oriented development, green development, and zero-waste development.
The model will be calibrated to the Greater L.A. Region (Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, and Imperial counties). It is expected that the co-laboratory’s technical development will be completed in the first two years. In the last three years, the co-laboratory will see numerous policy analyses, engaging practitioners from SCAG (Southern California Association of Governments) and other regional stakeholders with experts from the three campuses.
Once launched in the environment of the co-laboratory, the RELU-TRAN L.A. model will be capable of examining a variety of policies in the areas of environmental quality, energy use, land use, housing, and transportation, and the interaction of these areas in the regional economy. The modeling of these policies, with feedback between the academic experts on the one hand and the practitioners on the other, will result in better and more practically relevant thinking about policy, and the better education of all engaged in the project including post-docs and graduate students.
Acknowledgments
RELU-TRAN Chicago, the antecedent of RELU-TRAN L.A., was developed under two research grants awarded to Alex Anas. The research that led to RELU-TRAN was originally funded by a 1998 National Science Foundation Urban Research Initiative award SES 9816816. Since 2006, the model was extended and enhanced under a Science to Achieve Results (STAR award RD-83184101-0) from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, acquiring several new capabilities including the measurement of pollution from traffic. Prof. Richard Peiser of the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University put together a pilot research team for the application of RELU-TRAN Chicago to the Los Angeles region, and the Harvard Real Estate Initiative, which he directs, provided seed funding. While these sources of past support are gratefully acknowledged, they are not in any way responsible for any shortcomings of RELU-TRAN. The current project is supported by a Multi-campus Research Program and Initiative (MRPI) grant from the Office of the President, University of California, award number 142934. The views and recommendations expressed in the working papers and technical reports accessible from this webpage are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the Regents of the University of California.