THREE ESSAYS IN RESIDENTIAL LOCATIONS, HOUSEHOLD COMMUTING PATTERNS, AND SPATIAL N-PERSON PRISONER’S DILEMMA: THE CASE STUDY OF BANGKOK, THAILAND A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Cornell University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Nij Tontisirin August 2013 © 2013 Nij Tontisirin THREE ESSAYS IN RESIDENTIAL LOCATIONS, HOUSEHOLD COMMUTING PATTERNS, AND SPATIAL N-PERSON PRISONER’S DILEMMA: THE CASE STUDY OF BANGKOK, THAILAND Nij Tontisirin, Ph. D. Cornell University 2013 This dissertation consists of three chapters, each of which explores urban-related issues—built environment, residential locations, and transportation behaviors—in Bangkok, Thailand. The research highlights different analytical methods in regional science and aims to advance the knowledge empirically, methodologically, and theoretically. The first chapter provides an empirical contribution by analyzing the residential locations of the creative class in Bangkok. The creative class literature is premised on the location calculus of innovative individuals that contrast sharply with the rest of the population. Yet few empirical studies have tested the creative class hypothesis—the proclivity of creative people to gravitate toward locations that offer certain built amenities. In the case of Bangkok, the pattern of residential locations of creative households is found to be significantly different from that of common ones, and the built environments that attract creative households are mass transit stations, shopping malls, and public parks. The second chapter develops a method to forecast household travel mode choice and trip sharing behavior using household socio-economic survey, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and trip table data. It demonstrate how standard household survey data that are not specifically designed for use in a modal split model can be used to forecast household travel mode choice and estimate ridership for a mass transit mode. The forecast also reveals that households are more likely to share their trips when the first traveler is male or when there are school children. The third chapter develops a theoretical framework to analyze traffic congestion from micro-behavioral foundation. This paper extends the evolution of an n-person prisoner’s dilemma within actual geographical space, integrating an agent- based model with GIS, in conflicting spatial interactions that ultimately lead to the emergence of cooperation. The spatial agent-based model captures the response strategies of autonomous individuals in a landscape that contextualizes both the natural and the built environment. This theoretical framework thus serves as a basis for the analysis of collective strategic decisions on the use of a common resource from a game theoretical perspective BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH Born and raised in Bangkok, Thailand, Nij Tontisirin has received her Bachelor of Architecture (first class honors) from Chulalongkorn University in 2003 and Master in Urban Planning from Harvard University Graduate School of Design in 2006. Her research interests focus on urban economics, in particular on the impacts of public transit on household residential locations and commuting patterns, as well as spatial data visualization and analysis. Tontisirin received a merit-based scholarship from the Royal Thai Government to pursue her graduate studies from 2004 to 2010. While studying at Cornell, she has worked both as a researcher and a teaching assistant. In 2008, she worked with Professor Kieran Donaghy to analyze the economic impact of Cornell on local and New York State economies. Since 2009, she has worked as a research assistant in the Cornell Program on Applied Demographics, under the supervision of Professor Joe Francis. She has also been a teaching assistant of several graduate-level courses in microeconomics, macroeconomics, planning methods, and introduction to Geographic Information Systems. After the completion of her Ph.D., she returns to Thailand and works as a lecturer in the Faculty of Architecture and Planning at Thammasat University. Besides her academic and research duties at Cornell, Tontisirin also has worked as a librarian assistant in the Maps & Geospatial Information Collection at John M. Olin Library. She has created many historical and contemporary maps illustrated in several dissertations and books, including The Edge of The Woods: Iroquoia, 1534–1701 by Professor Jon Parmenter, Islam: A Short Guide to the Faith edited by Professor Shawkat Toorawa, and Chinese Medicine and Healing: An Illustrated History by Professor TJ Hinrichs. Nij Tontisirin is married to Sutee Anantsuksomsri. iii For My Beloved Husband, Sutee Anantsuksomsri iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Throughout my life, I have always been so grateful that I have been surrounded by so many wonderful people—who generously and kindly help me overcome any difficulties that I have encountered and make my life so delightful. Upon the completion of my doctoral studies, I would like to express my great appreciation to these people. First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all of my committee members: Professor Kieran P. Donaghy, Professor Joe D. Francis, Professor Mark A. Turnquist, and Professor Yuri S. Mansury. As my committee chair, Professor Donaghy has always been able to find some time—from his already tight schedule—to kindly give me his insightful and invaluable guidance on my dissertation. I am also very thankful for the research and teaching opportunities he has given me for many years. I am greatly indebted to Professor Francis for constantly giving me his heartfelt care, generous supports, and constructive advice, as well as for the research opportunity at Cornell Program on Applied Demographics (PAD). He always greets me with a bright smile and a warm big hug every “mid-morning” of days we meet and once again at the end of the day before we depart at the bus stop —I will always cherish these memories for the rest of my life. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Professor Turnquist for his creative and rigorous guidance on my research. He has always given me motivation and encouragement to overcome any obstacles during the research process. I am immensely grateful for the advice, mentorship, and friendship given by Professor Mansury, who has spent untold hours attentively discussing—and sometimes reshaping—every single detail of my research. In addition to my committee members, I would like to express my gratitude to Professor Iwan J. Azis, who first opened the door to Regional Science to me and has taught me many valuable lessons academically, professionally, and personally. v Financial supports from various sources make it possible for me to complete my doctoral studies. I would not be able to begin my graduate studies in the US without the 6-year funding from the Office of the Higher Education Commission, Thailand Ministry of Education. I very much appreciate several teaching and research assistantships that I have received from the Department of City and Regional Planning (CRP) and PAD. I am also very grateful to the Graduate School and CRP for their generous conference and travel funding, enabling me to travel around the world to present my research at conferences as well as to Thailand to collect data. I also would like to thank Cornell’s Southeast Asia Program for giving me International Research Travel Grant, allowing me to make another trip to Thailand to collect additional data. My life at Cornell has been so pleasant because I have shared many great memories with my good friends and colleagues. I would like to express my gratitude to Robert Kibbee, Boris Michev, Howard Brentlinger, Susann Argetsinger, and Suzanne Schwartz who make my five and a half years of working at the Olin Library Map & Geospatial Information Collection so special and enjoyable. I particularly thank Bob Kibbee for giving me my very first job on campus—even before my first semester started—and Boris Michev for being so flexible with my tight schedule in the last few years of my graduate studies. I really appreciate the opportunity to work with Professor Francis, Jan Vink, and Suzy Smith at PAD, and I did enjoy every moment working there. The research skills, knowledge, and professional experiences that I have gained from the map room and PAD are extremely valuable to me personally. I am very fortunate to have many good friends who make my life in Ithaca so enjoyable. By no particular order, I wish to thank Dr. Sivalai Vararuth, Dr. Paitoon Wongsasutthikul, Pannarai Chingchitr, Anuk Serechetapongse and her lovely mother Chularat Niratisayakul, Dr. Pimnara Hirankasi, Dr. Benjarong Suwankiri, Dapong Boon-Long, Navara Boon-Long, Dr. Wannasarn Noonsuk and Nareerat Leelachat, vi Chayanee Chawanote, Anutchanat Jaroenjitrkam, Pimbucha Rusmevichientong, Tipaluck Krityakierne, Dr. Thanasin Tanompongphandh, Dr. Rujira Deewatthanawong, Apikanya McCarty, Dr. Tee and Sutani Havananda, and Chanita Somton Larsson for their invaluable friendships and great memories that we share. Special thanks to Supree Srisamran for his friendship and help throughout many years. I truly appreciate the kindness of Prasit Deewatthanawong, who helped us move until the very last minute. I am immensely grateful to Dr. Nattapong Pattanapong—who first introduced me to Regional Science—for his genuine supports and advice. I am particularly thankful to Ji-Won Park; we endured taking countless challenging classes together and shared