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on Transport Economics |
| By: | Llanto, Gilberto M. |
| Abstract: | Local road investments work for growth and poverty reduction in local areas. The paper highlights the importance of investing in local roads and directs attention to the critical role of local government units (LGUs) in improving the local road network. Raising additional monies to fund local roads is only partly a solution. Much more will depend on the quality and strength of governance and adherence to good planning, budgeting, and procurement practices in the national government and local government units. This paper identifies what local government units can do to improve local road networks. |
| Keywords: | Philippines, road network, logistics, local governments, fiscal capacity |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:phd:dpaper:dp_2011-38&r=tre |
| By: | Hornung, Erik (Ifo Institute) |
| Abstract: | We study the e ect of railroad access on urban population growth. Using GIS techniques, we match triennial population data for roughly 1000 cities in nineteenth-century Prussia to georeferenced maps of the German railroad network. We nd positive short- and long-term e ects of having a station on urban growth for di erent periods during 1840-1871. Causal e ects of (potentially endogenous) railroad access on city growth are identi ed using instrumentalvariable and xed-e ects estimation techniques. Our instrument identi es exogenous variation in railroad access by constructing straight-line corridors between terminal stations. Counterfactual models using pre-railroad growth yield no evidence in support of the hypothesis that railroads appeared as a consequence of a previous growth spurt. |
| Keywords: | Railroads, Technological Di usion, City Growth, Prussian Economic History |
| Date: | 2012 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cge:warwcg:79&r=tre |
| By: | Jedwab, Remi; Moradi, Alexander |
| Abstract: | We study the impact of colonial investments in modern transportation in- frastructure on agriculture and development in Ghana. Two railway lines were built between 1901 and 1923 to connect the coast to mining areas and the large hinterland city of Kumasi. This unintendedly opened vast expanses of tropical forest to cocoa cultivation, allowing Ghana to become the world's largest producer. Using data at a very fine spatial level, we find a strong effect of railroad connectivity on cocoa production in 1927, generating rents in the order of 4.5% of GDP. We show that the economic boom in cocoa-producing areas was associated with demographic growth and urbanization. We find no effect for lines that were not built yet, and lines that were planned but never built. Lastly, railway construction had a persistent impact: railway districts are more developed today despite a complete displacement of rail by other means of transport |
| Date: | 2012–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ner:lselon:http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/42263/&r=tre |
| By: | Barla, Philippe; Lapierre, Nathanael; Alvarez Daziano, Ricardo; Herrmann, Markus |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we evaluate the potential impacts of travel demand management strategies to reduce the commuting mode share of automobiles using stated preference data. The analysis is carried out on members of Université Laval in Quebec City (Canada). We measure the impact of travel time and cost as well as attitudes toward automobile, public transit and the environment. We find elasticities with respect to time and cost parameters that are low implying that large changes are required to have a noticeable impact. We find however that combining several policy interventions is more effective. Policies aiming at reducing automobile dependency by changing attitudes do not appear to be particularly effective. |
| Keywords: | Mode choice, stated preferences, travel demand management, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, R41, R48, Q58, |
| Date: | 2012–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:ulavwp:121311&r=tre |
| By: | Ujjayant Chakravorty (University of Alberta and Toulouse School of Economics (INRA, LERNA)); Marie-Hélène Hubert (University of Rennes 1 - CREM, (UMR 6211 CNRS)); Michel Moreaux (Toulouse School of Economics (IDEI, LERNA)); Linda Nøstbakken (Department of Marketing, Business Economics and Law, University of Alberta) |
| Abstract: | Biofuels have received a lot of attention as a substitute for gasoline in transportation. They have been blamed universally for recent increases in world food prices. Both the United States and the European Union have adopted mandatory blending policies that require a sharp increase in their use. Many studies have shown that these energy mandates may have a large (30-60%) impact on food prices. We develop a model that takes into account dietary preferences - the fact that with rising incomes, people in the developing world will consume more meat and dairy products, which are land-intensive relative to cereals. On the supply side, we allow for conversion of new lands to farming. We show that about half the increase in food prices can be attributed to population growth and dietary changes, and only the remaining come from biofuel policy. Moreover, with endogenous land supply, food price increases are likely to be much smaller than predicted by other studies. Finally, these biofuel policies do not lead to any reduction in carbon emissions. |
| Keywords: | Clean Energy, Food Demand, Land Quality, Renewable Fuel Standards, Transportation |
| JEL: | Q24 Q32 Q42 |
| Date: | 2012–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tut:cremwp:201214&r=tre |
| By: | Kwok-Chiu Fung (Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI)); Alicia Garcia-Herrero; Francis Ng |
| Abstract: | In this paper we critically review the relevant information and literature that can enhance the feasibility and the successful implementation of cross-border infrastructure projects. We provide detailed information concerning foreign direct investment in the major emerging regions : East Asia and the Pacific, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. We also discuss the theoretical and empirical literature which sheds light on the characteristics of transnational infrastructure projects, who should conduct them, and what determines their existence. The literature points to the importance of government involvement in transnational infrastructure projects as there are clear external benefits which will otherwise not be reaped. It also points to the importance of coordination for the success of the project. The Asian Development Bank is well placed to perform that role. Lastly, we provide six cases of cross-border infrastructure projects, two each from East Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. These cases illustrate the critical need for smooth coordination of the diverse groups of team players, top-level backing of the projects, as well as a thorough understanding of all the political and financial factors involved that can influence the success of these projects. |
| Keywords: | foreign direct investment, Cross-Border Infrastructure Projects, FDI, East Asia and the Pacific, Latin America, and Eastern Europe |
| JEL: | O19 F15 F36 R58 |
| Date: | 2011–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eab:govern:23262&r=tre |
| By: | Xavier Fageda (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona); Juan Luis Jiménez (Department of Applied Economic Analysis. University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria); Carlos Díaz Santamaría (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we examine whether airline prices on national routes are higher than those charged on international routes. Drawing on a database prepared specifically for this study, we estimate a pricing equation for all routes originating from Gran Canaria (Canary Islands, Spain), differentiating between national and international routes. A key difference between these two route types is that island residents benefit from discounts on domestic flights. When controlling for variables related to airline characteristics, market structure and demand, we find that national passengers who are non-residents on the islands are paying higher prices than international passengers. |
| Keywords: | Air transport, discounts, prices. JEL classification: L93, H2, L13. |
| Date: | 2012–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ira:wpaper:201207&r=tre |