The Value of Urgency: Evidence from Real-Time Congestion Pricing

Abstract

State University, and the University of Texas at Austin, WCERE 2018, ZEW. Finally, we thank Stephanie Wiggins and Kathleen McCune at LA Metro for access to ExpressLanes transaction data and Arthur T, Degaetano for weather data. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Bureau of Economic Research.NBER working papers are circulated for discussion and comment purposes. They have not been peer-reviewed or been subject to the review by the NBER Board of Directors that accompanies official NBER publications.

Experimental Evidence on Socioeconomic Differences in Risk‐Taking and Risk Premiums

“…This finding is supported by Bento et al . (2017), Kreindler (2018) and their reviewed evidence. Using a field experiment in the context of congestion charging, Kreindler (2018) found that the WTP for avoiding late arrival (relative to early arrival) would be much greater.…”

“…Bento et al . (2017) presented the first empirical estimation of the value of urgency, incurred when not arriving at a critical deadline, and concluded that it should be included in the cost–benefit analysis of road project appraisals.…”

The Impact of HOV and HOT Lanes on Congestion in the United States

“…Another motorist value affecting the choice to use HOT lanes was identified in a 2020 working paper: the value of urgency (VOU). (Bento, et al, 2020) The authors used detailed data from the I-10 express lanes in Los Angeles, with more than 982 000 observations from February through December 2013. They selected this corridor because its multiple entry and exit points enabled motorists to make last-minute decisions to use portions of the express lane when they deemed it to be worth paying the variable toll.…”

High-occupancy Toll Lanes

“…More than half of the time lost to traffic congestion is unpredictable, being due to crashes, bad weather, and other shocks (Dowling et al, 2004;Kwon, Mauch and Varaiya, 2006). This lack of reliability accounts for 30-90% of the total cost of congestion (Bento, Roth and Waxman, 2020;Small, Winston and Yan, 2005).…”