A review of guidelines for including wider economic impacts in transport appraisal

Abstract

In this paper we examine how 23 industrialized countries treat wider economic impacts in transport appraisals. We identify 12 different types of impacts based on these countries' appraisal guidelines. Agglomeration impacts and Production changes in imperfect markets are the most widely accepted, being recognized by 14 and 10 countries, respectively. However, about half of the impacts are mentioned by only one country, and few recommend including the impacts directly in cost-benefit analyses. Several countries provide provisos or criteria that must be met before WEI can be assessed in the first place. We found method recommendations for quantifying wider economic impacts in 10 countries. However, with the exception of the UK Department for Transport's methodological framework, there is very little international consensus on the choice of appropriate methods. Our findings thus supplement and reinforce the conclusions from the Norwegian Official Report of the Hagen Committee (NOU 2012:16, 2012) that there is currently no established consensus on the magnitude and relevance of WEIs, or on how and which of these impacts should be taken into account in transport appraisals. Recommendations for further research and appraisal practices are provided.

Transport Corridors for Wider Socio–Economic Development

“…al. [42] investigated how 22 developed countries (Nordic countries, 15 countries in the EU, the USA, Canada, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan) treat WEBs in transport project appraisals. They found that 15 countries recognized at least one category of WEB, and only 10 of them recommended methods for their assessment.…”

Analysis of the Wider Economic Impact of a Transport Infrastructure Project Using an Integrated Land Use Transport Model

“…After examining how 23 industrialized countries treat WEIs in transport appraisals, Wangsness et al [2] concluded that even though the concept of WEIs has matured over the last decade, there is still relatively little consensus on the magnitude and relevance of WEIs, and further research is needed to better understand the nature of WEIs. Our paper aims to offer some insights into the area from a developing country's perspective.…”

“…Researchers argue that large transport projects, together with the appropriate policies, can generate additional benefits over the user benefits calculated in the traditional Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) method. The assessment of WEIs has been included in the guidelines for transport appraisal in many countries, e.g., the U.K., the Netherlands, and so on [1,2]. Nowadays, major cities in developing countries are undergoing massive transportation infrastructure construction, which has significant impacts on the land use and economic activities in these cities.…”

“…According to Equations (2) and (3) and the agglomeration elasticity by industries in Table 1, the wider benefits for the representative zones due to the agglomeration effect for all the industries were calculated and are shown in Figure 11. The total additional benefit was calculated to be 58.83 million yuan in 2008 yuan.…”

A review of computable general equilibrium models for transport and their applications in appraisal

“…The operation of CGE models also tends to be a 'black box' where model mechanics are hidden or difficult to understand. Thus far, only the Netherlands has guidelines detailing the use of CGE models in WEI appraisal (Wangsness et al, 2016).…”