TRANSPORTATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: AN ASSESSMENT OF THE SHRP2 C11 TOOLS AND THEIR SYNERGIES WITH ECONOMIC SIMULATION MODELS FOR THE EVALUATION OF WIDER ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS

The evaluation of the non-traditional economic impacts of transportation improvement projects has been recently drawing the attention of transportation agencies. Agencies are faced with the need to develop decision making processes that provide appropriate tools and methodologies, not only for the assessment of standard economic benefits (such as savings from vehicle operating costs, travel time, and safety), but also for the evaluation of wider economic benefits (such as market access, travel time reliability, and intermodal connectivity) and their subsequent economic development impacts. Despite the well-developed tools and techniques available for economic analysis, there is a gap in the practice of measuring the broad economic implications and impacts of transportation projects in the local economy, especially during the early and intermediate planning stages of the project. Currently, state agencies, such as the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT), are undertaking efforts to expand their scope with respect to the assessment of economic development potential of highway corridor improvements. The objectives of this project are to evaluate the use of SHRP2 C11 tools for assessing the wider economic benefits of Indiana highway corridor improvements and evaluate the synergies and opportunities of integration of these tools with other commercial software, such as TREDIS. Ultimately, this project will assist practitioners in understanding the scope, data requirements, methodological assumptions, and limitations of these tools.