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b'Improved transportation links help communities prosper financially, but there\\u2019s an unexpected social dividend that can compound that prosperity\\u2014lower rates of smoking and drinking and higher levels of school attendance.\\n\\nThe Philippine government started its \\u201cRo-Ro\\u201d policy in 2003 to link up islands and other remote areas in the archipelago nation with a system of roll-on, roll-off ferries.\\n\\nFamily incomes grew around the ports, with agricultural workers picking up non-farm work and farmers on islands around the ports able to increase their incomes through better access to markets and inputs to improve their farms. Altogether family incomes around the ports grew by about 4%.\\n\\nThe increased access to jobs and rising incomes had an unexpected social impact\\u2014less smoking and drinking and more kids in school. \\n\\nRead the transcript\\nhttp://bit.ly/2ASDMum\\n\\nRead the working paper\\nhttps://www.adb.org/publications/impact-improved-transport-connectivity-income-education-health-philippines\\n\\nAbout the authors\\nKris Francisco was a research associate at the ADB Institute at the time of writing\\n\\nMatthias Helble is senior economist and co-chair of the Research Department at ADBI.\\nhttps://www.adb.org/adbi/about/staff-profiles/matthias-helble\\n\\nKnow more about ADBI\\u2019s research on\\nTransport: http://bit.ly/2zORvP6\\nThe Philippines: http://bit.ly/2BKNRqM'