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on Transport Economics |
| By: | Dessouky, Maged |
| Abstract: | International trade continues to grow, increasing container traffic at seaports worldwide. The Port of Los Angeles saw a 20% increase in throughput from 2010-2018. Typically, loaded containers arriving at the ports are transported by truck to inland importers, emptied, and then returned to the port. The empty containers are then driven to inland exporters to be loaded and returned to the port for shipping. This lack of direct container exchange between importers and exporters, known as the empty container reuse problem, adds many truck trips to Southern California highways and adds significant expenses for shipping companies. Trucks transporting empty containers contribute to traffic congestion, greenhouse gas emissions, and local air pollution. Moving empty containers more efficiently could significantly reduce truck trips and the associated congestion and pollution. Researchers at the University of Southern California developed an optimization-based vehicle scheduling model that allows for a “street exchange” in which empty containers can go directly from importers to exporters without returning to the port. The model satisfies the current day’s known, or deterministic, demand while also accounting for the next day’s unpredictable, or stochastic, demand. The model is solved iteratively each day using this two-day time horizon to provide a routing plan for the current day’s demand. The model was tested using container demand data from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach as well as randomly generated data sets. This research brief summarizes findings from that project. View the NCST Project Webpage |
| Keywords: | Business, Engineering, Containers, Demand, Empty car miles, Freight handling, Mathematical models, Routing, Scheduling, Stochastic processes, Traffic assignment, Trucks |
| Date: | 2020–09–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsdav:qt9431s985&r=all |
| By: | Newbery, D. |
| Abstract: | Transport policy needs reform. Future Government investment and fiscal policy needs re-orienting to stimulate the economy after the Covid-19 lock-down. Prices used in project appraisal must include all external effects, committing to proper social cost-benefit analysis. In consequence, fuel duty rates need to be more than doubled as a prelude to proper road pricing. Transport investment needs to be increased even with proper road pricing and more allocated to walking and cycling, guided by benefit-cost ratios, following Eddington’s recommendations. The paper gives five reasons for raising fuel duty rates, more on diesel than petrol, and estimates the desired levels. |
| Keywords: | Transport policy, fuel taxes, road pricing, road investment |
| JEL: | D62 H23 R41 R48 |
| Date: | 2020–09–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cam:camdae:2081&r=all |
| By: | Sebastian Kraus; Nicolas Koch |
| Abstract: | The bicycle is a low-cost means of transport linked to low risk of COVID-19 transmission. Governments have incentivized cycling by redistributing street space as part of their post-lockdown strategies. Here, we evaluate the impact of provisional bicycle infrastructure on cycling traffic in European cities. We scrape daily bicycle counts spanning over a decade from 736 bicycle counters in 106 European cities. We combine this with data on announced and completed pop-up bike lane road work projects. On average 11.5 kilometers of provisional pop-up bike lanes have been built per city. Each kilometer has increased cycling in a city by 0.6\%. We calculate that the new infrastructure will generate \$3 billion in health benefits per year, if cycling habits are sticky. |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2008.05883&r=all |
| By: | Alexandra Belova (ECOPSY Consulting); Philippe Gagnepain (PSE - Paris School of Economics, PJSE - Paris Jourdan Sciences Economiques - UP1 - Université Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS Paris - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris sciences et lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement); Stéphane Gauthier (PSE - Paris School of Economics, PJSE - Paris Jourdan Sciences Economiques - UP1 - Université Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS Paris - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris sciences et lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement, Institute for Fiscal Studies) |
| Abstract: | We study competition in the U.S. airline industry relaxing the Nash equilibrium assumption that airlines are able to predict perfectly the behavior of their competitors. We assess empirically whether an equilibrium is more likely to occur if it is the unique rationalizable outcome. We find that equilibria of short distance routes with high traffic and low concentration are the most fragile, and low-cost companies appear detrimental to their occurrence. Our analysis is applied to the measurement of welfare gains from firms' entry, and to the characterization of the relevant market when some products are unobserved. |
| Keywords: | Rationalizability,Nash equilibrium,Cournot competition,structural model,airline industry,welfare analysis,relevant market |
| Date: | 2020–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:halshs-02932780&r=all |
| By: | Young, Mischa; Farber, Steven |
| Abstract: | We examine the wait-time of Uber’s wheelchair accessible service (UberWAV) in Toronto, to determine whether it meets the City’s 11-minutes average wait-time requirement. Using a 12-million record dataset of every ride-hailing trip conducted in Toronto between September 2016 and March 2017, we show that wait-times for UberWAV services were, on average, longer during rush hour periods and for trips further away from downtown. Despite this, we find that UberWAV services met the average wait-time requirement imposed by the City and believe that by offering shorter wait-times than previously available, this service significantly improves the mobility of people who require accessible transport services. |
| Date: | 2020–08–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:z9a4h&r=all |
| By: | TAKAYAMA Yuki, (Kanazawa University); IKEDA Kiyohiro, (Tohoku University); THISSE Jacques-François, (Université catholique de Louvain, CORE, Belgium) |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the conditions for the emergence of a system of cities in a general equilibrium setting that accounts for the cost of shipping commodities between cities and the commuting cost borne by consumers within cities. Potential cities are equally distributed over a circular space. We find that the multiplicity of stable spatial equilibria is the rule and not the exception. Using the concept of stability areas to study the transition from one stable equilibrium to the next, we show that decreasing commuting or transportation costs generate equilibrium paths that feature either a megalopolis or hierarchical system of cities. |
| Keywords: | economic geographpy, cities, racetrack economy, multiplicity of stable equilibria, commuting costs, transportation costs |
| JEL: | F12 R12 |
| Date: | 2020–01–23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cor:louvco:2020005&r=all |
| By: | Zhaojun Wang; Duy Nong; Amanda M. Countryman; James J. Corbett; Travis Warziniack |
| Abstract: | Global ballast water management regulations aiming to decrease aquatic species invasion require actions that can increase shipping costs. We employ an integrated shipping cost and global economic modeling approach to investigate the impacts of ballast water regulations on bilateral trade, national economies, and shipping patterns. Given the potential need for more stringent regulation at regional hotspots of species invasions, this work considers two ballast water treatment policy scenarios: implementation of current international regulations, and a possible stricter regional regulation that targets ships traveling to and from the United States while other vessels continue to face current standards. We find that ballast water management compliance costs under both scenarios lead to modest negative impacts on international trade and national economies overall. However, stricter regulations applied to U.S. ports are expected to have large negative impacts on bilateral trade of several specific commodities for a few countries. Trade diversion causes decreased U.S. imports of some products, leading to minor economic welfare losses. |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2008.11334&r=all |
| By: | Benjamin Feigenberg; Conrad Miller |
| Abstract: | During traffic stops, police search black and Hispanic motorists more often than white motorists, yet those searches are equally or less likely to yield contraband. We ask whether equalizing search rates by motorist race would reduce contraband yield. We use unique administrative data from Texas to isolate variation in search behavior across highway patrol troopers and find that, across troopers, search rates are unrelated to the proportion of searches that yield contraband. Our results imply that, in partial equilibrium, troopers can equalize search rates across racial groups, maintain the status quo search rate, and increase contraband yield. |
| JEL: | J15 K42 |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:27761&r=all |
| By: | Dumas, Christelle; Játiva, Ximena (Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences) |
| Abstract: | Spatial isolation is considered as one of the main determinants of poverty. Therefore, many transport investments are undertaken with a stated objective of poverty reduction. In our paper, we evaluate a Tanzanian program that rehabilitated 2500km of major roads between 2008 and 2013. We deal with endogenous placement issues with a household fixed-effect strategy combined with a propensity score matching. Contrary to most studies, we find damaging effects of the road on the rural population: the price of the main product (rice) decreases, they reduce rice production and reallocate labor away from farm but opportunities of o_-farm work are scarce. This results in depressed wages and households declare a lower satisfaction. This is consistent with a situation where rural households face an increased competition due to lower transportation costs. |
| Keywords: | Roads; Poverty; Rural households; Africa |
| JEL: | O12 O13 J43 O15 O18 |
| Date: | 2020–09–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fri:fribow:fribow00518&r=all |
| By: | Florent Laroche (LAET - Laboratoire Aménagement Économie Transports - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - ENTPE - École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique); Ayana Lamatkhanova |
| Abstract: | The paper explores the effect of competition on prices and frequencies for the Interurban rail market in Europe. Intramodal competition is assessed by the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI). Intermodal competition takes into account new types of service such as coach and carpooling services. The originality of the analysis stems from the method and database used. The results show that intra-modal competition has a significant impact on frequencies but not on economy class prices because of oligopolistic organizations (duopoly). In addition, the effects of intermodal competition are limited mainly because of considerable differences between services in terms of travel time, comfort and users' preferences. |
| Keywords: | Direct competition,Railway competition,Herfindhal-Hirschman index,Oligopolistic market,Regulation approach |
| Date: | 2020–09–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:halshs-02930864&r=all |
| By: | Amankwah-Amoah, Joseph |
| Abstract: | The allure for businesses to jettison short-term costly processes, regulatory demands and green business practices (GBPs) in the turbulent times of COVID-19 remains sky high. Although GBPs and eco-friendly policies deliver results in the long term in terms of market competitiveness (MC), in many industries firms have sought to jettison well-rooted practices in the face of the existential threats stemming from COVID-19. In this paper, we examine the new contemporary challenges of adopting and implementing environmental sustainability policies in the global airline industry in the wake of COVID-19. The analysis sheds light on firms’ level sustainability initiatives such as upgrading to environmentally friendly aircraft and offsetting emission footprint, and institutional initiatives such as the European Union Emissions Trading System and the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for Aviation. Our analysis demonstrates that some airlines and industrial bodies sought to sidestep environmentally friendly commitments and practices to overcome new challenges such as cost pressures, survival threat and deprioritising environmental sustainability initiatives. We establish and examine the implications of the analysis. |
| Keywords: | Sustainability practices; COVID-19; airline industry; environmental sustainability policies; eco-friendly policies; business development. |
| JEL: | L1 |
| Date: | 2020–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:101491&r=all |
| By: | Leonardo M. Millefiori; Paolo Braca; Dimitris Zissis; Giannis Spiliopoulos; Stefano Marano; Peter K. Willett; Sandro Carniel |
| Abstract: | To prevent the outbreak of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), numerous countries around the world went into lockdown and imposed unprecedented containment measures. These restrictions progressively produced changes to social behavior and global mobility patterns, evidently disrupting social and economic activities. Here, using maritime traffic data, collected via a global network of Automatic Identification System (AIS) receivers, we analyze the effects that the COVID-19 pandemic and the containment measures had on the shipping industry, which accounts alone for more than 80% of the world trade. We introduce the notion of a "maritime mobility index," a synthetic composite index, to quantitatively assess ship mobility in a given unit of time. The mobility index calculation used in this study, has a worldwide extent and is based on the computation of cumulative navigated miles (CNM) of all ships reporting their position and navigational status via AIS. We compare 2020 mobility levels to those of previous years assuming that an unchanged growth rate would have been achieved, if not for COVID-19. Following the outbreak, we find an unprecedented drop in maritime mobility, across all categories of commercial shipping. The reduced activity is observable from March to June, when the most severe restrictions were in force, producing a variation of mobility quantified between -5.62% and -13.77% for container ships, between +2.28% and -3.32% for dry bulk, between -0.22% and -9.27% for wet bulk, and between -19.57% and -42.77% for passenger shipping. The presented study is unprecedented for the uniqueness and completeness of the employed AIS dataset, which comprises a trillion AIS messages broadcast worldwide by 50000 ships, a figure that closely parallels the documented size of the world merchant fleet. |
| Date: | 2020–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2009.06960&r=all |
| By: | Ryusaku Matsuo (Graduate School of Economics, Kobe University); Mitoshi Yamaguchi (Graduate School of Economics, Kobe University) |
| Abstract: | Roadside Stations were first constructed in Japan by the erstwhile Ministry of Construction (now known as the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism) in 1993, when a total of 103 stations were set up. In 1999, this number had increased to 551, and by 2013, it had reached 1014. As of 2020, there are 1173 Roadside Stations. A Roadside Station system is a registration system for facilities with three roles: rest, offering information, and regional alliance functions. The activities of Roadside Stations lead to endogenous development. Therefore, we sought to measure their contribution to the economy. We used several simultaneous equation models, which include variables such as parking space, sales figures, management expense, number of visitors, number of events, and gross business expense. In previous papers, we calculated the ripple effect of the Roadside Station on the economy. Here, we demonstrate that the number of employees is estimated to have increased by 250 and 266 in the regions of Hanshin and Tajima, respectively. Moreover, according to our research, the effective multiplication factor in the Hanshin region in Hyogo Prefecture was 1.55. The annual sales of all Roadside Stations in Japan were estimated to be approximately 250 billion yen in 2015. If the research result in the Hanshin region is applied to this annual total amount, the economic ripple effect of Roadside Stations for all regions in Japan is estimated to reach 375 billion yen. In 2007 and 2010, two grants were provided to selected Roadside Stations. One was the 2007 Nou-san-gyoson Kasseika Project Shien Kofukin (Grants to Support Projects to Revitalize Rural Areas, GSPRRA), and the other was the Shakaisihon Seibi Sogo Kofukin (Comprehensive Grant for Infrastructure Development, CGID) in 2010. Of the 83 stations in this study, 27 received the new type of grant. The stations that received these grants saw a significant improvement in their business. Therefore, it is important to measure the factors that impact the sales of Roadside Stations in Japan. |
| Date: | 2020–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:koe:wpaper:2016&r=all |