Benefits of roads

The United Kingdom (UK) climate for road investment has been poor for nearly two decades. In the last ten years the major road network has increased by just 1 per cent, as it strains to accommodate a 26 per cent increase in licensed vehicles. 92 per cent of UK passenger travel and nearly 90 per cent of freight depends on road transport to keep industry and commerce moving, allow individuals equality of opportunity and to enjoy the freedoms of travel. The vehicles delivering these benefits enter the era of the climate change agenda idling in traffic jams on a wholly inadequate major road system and one of the poorest motorway networks in Europe. Representing a wide and varied range of influential British road user organisations the Road Users' Alliance places the results of its member research studies in the context of government policy, to highlight both the business and social benefits of roads and how changes in the process of cost: benefit analysis are long overdue. This paper will consider the economic and social benefits of roads along with other externalities, covering subjects such as: rates of return on public spending on transport; the impact of car ownership on the lowest income quintile of society; the cost of accidents and the environmental impacts of overcrowded roads.

• Authors:
  • Green, T
• Conference:
  • International Road Federation World Meeting, 16th, 2010, Lisbon, Portugal
• Publication Date: 2010-5

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: 10p (oral presentations)
• Serial:
  • Issue Number: 500

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Benefit cost analysis; Economics; Highway operations; Highways; Investments; Socioeconomic factors; Types of roads by network
• Uncontrolled Terms: Road design and management
• Geographic Terms: United Kingdom
• ATRI Terms: Cost benefit analysis; Investment; Road economics; Road management; Road network; Socioeconomic factors; Transport economics
• Subject Areas: Economics; Highways; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01382613
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: ARRB
• Files: ATRI
• Created Date: Aug 22 2012 1:24PM