Border effects and spatial autocorrelation in the supply of network infrastructure

In this paper we analyze the supply of network infrastructure at the regional level. Special attention is paid to spatial autocorrelation aspects. A method is developed to test which impact international borders have on the supply of network infrastructure in border regions. An empirical illustration is given for the regions in the EU. We find that in the case of railways spatial spill-overs are indeed significant. However, the hypothesis that border effects play a role in railway densities has to be rejected.