Total cost analysis: An alternative to benefit-cost analysis in evaluating transportation alternatives: Introduction Key features of total cost analysis Application across modes Accounting for full costs Evaluation Of the "do nothing" alternative Case study alternatives Cost model Cost parameters Demand modeling 1990 base, do nothing, and ITS alternatives ITSD alternative Modeling trip length changes with pricing Modelrng mode shifts with pricing Case study analysis results Conclusions Note

This paper explains the theory in support of total cost analysis (TCA) to compare transportation system alternatives The full costs of each alternative are first aggregated, including travel time costs and monetizable environmental and social costs. Many costs which are considered on the benefits si...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Transportation (Dordrecht) 1997-05, Vol.24 (2), p.107
Main Authors: DECORLA-SOUZA, PATRICK, Everett, Jerry, Gardner, Brian, Culp, Michael
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Consumers
Cost benefit analysis
Cost control
Decision making
Internal rate of return
Operating costs
Roads & highways
Telecommuting
Transportation planning
Transportation services
Travel
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Summary:This paper explains the theory in support of total cost analysis (TCA) to compare transportation system alternatives The full costs of each alternative are first aggregated, including travel time costs and monetizable environmental and social costs. Many costs which are considered on the benefits side of the equation in benefit-cost analysis (BCA) as "cost savings" are brought over to the costs side. Total cost differences among alternatives are then traded off against their estimated non-monetized benefits or impacts, just as a consumer trades off product quality against cost before deciding which product he or she will buy One advantage of TCA over traditional BCA is that the concept of "total cost" is more easily understood by the public and by political decision-makers than BCA concepts such as "net present worth", "benefit-cost ratio" and "internal rate of return", A second advantage is that there is no suggestion that all "benefits" have been considered: decision-makers are free to use their own value judgements to trade off total cost against non-monetizable social, environmental and economic impacts. just as they trade off quality and convenience against cost when purchasing goods and services in their roles as consumers The TCA approach is demonstrated in this paper through a case study of two systemwide alternatives for the Baltimore, MD urban area
ISSN:0049-4488
1572-9435