Uneven Alignment of Economic, Functional, and Rail-Accessibility Centralities in the Seoul Metropolitan Area, 2000–2020

Abstract

This study examines how alignment among economic, OD-based functional, and rail-accessibility dimensions of centrality changed in the Seoul Metropolitan Area and which municipal changes were associated with 2020 mismatch. We construct separate measures from land-price and economic-activity data, OD flows, and station-based rail-accessibility indicators for 59 municipalities observed at five target years from 2000 to 2020. Mean rank mismatch increased from 0.182 to 0.243, while Kendall's W declined from 0.748 to 0.604. The economic-functional gap accounted for 50.2% of the increase, although it remained the smallest pairwise gap in 2020. Mismatch showed substantial but incomplete temporal persistence. After accounting for baseline mismatch and metropolitan location, municipalities with larger increases in the share of residents aged 65 and older had lower 2020 mismatch; estimates for changes in one-person-household and manufacturing-employment shares were imprecise. Economic concentration, realized mobility, and rail accessibility therefore became less consistently aligned over the study period. For planning and center identification, a single centrality dimension may conceal municipalities whose economic, functional, and accessibility profiles diverge.