The Benefits of Forced Experimentation: Striking Evidence from the London Underground Network
Larcom, Rauch and Willems present evidence that a significant share of commuters on the London Underground do not travel on their best route. A strike that forced many commuters to try new routes brought lasting changes in behaviour. The effect is stronger for commuters living in areas where the Underground map is more distorted, which points to the importance of imperfect information. Information gained from the strike improved network efficiency, and search costs alone are unlikely to explain the original behaviour.
Larcom, Rauch and Willems present evidence that a significant share of commuters on the London Underground do not travel on their best route. A strike that forced many commuters to try new routes brought lasting changes in behaviour. The effect is stronger for commuters living in areas where the Underground map is more distorted, which points to the importance of imperfect information. Information gained from the strike improved network efficiency, and search costs alone are unlikely to explain the original behaviour.
Written from the abstract as shown on the OpenAlex record, read 2026-11-04.
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Larcom, S., Rauch, F., & Willems, T. (2017). The Benefits of Forced Experimentation: Striking Evidence from the London Underground Network. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 132(4), 2019-2055. doi:10.1093/qje/qjx020