Current Focus Areas
Transportation Economics Research Needs
- Economic Issues Surrounding Automated and Connected Vehicles
- Taxi Usage, Pricing and Urban Transport
- Economic Principles in Advance Disaster Planning
- Issues Relating to Privatizing Roads in the United States
- Risk Assessment
To participate in any of these research areas, please fill out the form on the Research page.
On Going Activities
Sign up here to volunteer for any of these activities.
Membership Activities
One aspect of keeping a group of volunteers interested in the committee is to try to
incorporate additional fun events into our meetings. We have a working group formed to
look for opportunities to get together outside of the formal TRB meeting rooms:
Membership Activities
- Paula Dowell, Jon Skolnik, Brian Alstadt, Rimon Rafiah,
Holly Krambeck, and Jonathan Peters.
Economic Evaluation
There is a general heightened awareness of allocating funds to the uses where they are most
effective. Therefore, the committee's commitment to disseminating best transportation
economics analysis practices, including BCA, is finding more receptive audiences. As such, we
will continue to:
- Find events (conferences, meetings, workshops, etc.) where we can interject some
transportation economics focused content into the event. We have a working group that
focuses on identifying such events and working with the host of the event to accomplish
this objective. Working group members include:
Papers, Sessions, and
Conferences - Jim Gillespie, Nadia Gkritza, Katherine Harback,
Nancy Bergeron, Adrian Moore, and Darren Timothy.
- Co-sponsor sessions at TRB events with other committees to reach out to their
members.
- Foster and encourage our committee liaisons (listed below) to actively seek out
opportunities similar to those mentioned in above.
Committee Liaisons
Committee Number |
Committee Name |
Liaison(s) |
A0030T
| Task Force on Data for Decisions and Performance Measures
| Nancy Bergeron |
ABC30 |
Performance Measurement |
Valentin Vulov |
ABC40 |
Transportation Asset Management |
Rimon Rafiah |
ABE10 |
Revenue and Finance |
Brian Weatherford |
ABE25 |
Congestion Pricing |
Brian Weatherford |
ABE30 |
Transportation Issues in Major US Cities |
Rabinder Bains |
ABE50 |
Transportation Demand Management |
Sisinnio Concas |
ADA50 |
Transportation Planning, Programming and Systems Evaluation |
Shiva K. Shrestha |
ADB10 |
Travel Behavior and Values |
Lei Zhang |
ADB40 |
Transportation Demand Forecasting |
Lei Zhang |
ADC10 |
Environmental Analysis in Transportation |
|
ADD10 |
Transportation and Economic Development |
Brian Weatherford / Nadia Gkritza |
ADD20 |
Social and Economic Factors of Transportation |
Rabinder Bains |
ADD30 |
Transportation and Land Development |
Kara Kockelman |
ADD40 |
Transportation and Sustainability |
|
ADD50 |
Environmental Justice in Transportation |
|
ABH15 |
Intelligent Transportation Systems |
Peter Rafferty |
AHB35 |
HOV, HOT, and MLs |
Mark Burris |
ANB20 | Safety Data, Analysis and Evaluation | Nancy Bergeron
|
APO50 |
Bus Transit Systems |
|
ATO10 |
Freight Transportation Economics and Regulation |
Victor Aragonés / Nadia Gkritza |
AHB10 |
Regional Transportation Systems Management and Operations |
Valentin Vulov |
AVO40 |
Aviation Economics and Forecasting |
Katherine Harback |
Technology Transfer
The committee recently took over the BCA website (formerly on CalTrans servers, now
at bca.transportationeconomics.org)
and has greatly enhanced our own committee
website (www.transportationeconomics.org).
The committee's internet working group includes:
Internet Website/Webmaster
- Sabya Misha with help from Peter Rafferty, Valentin Vulov, Sara Khoeini and Shanjiang Zhu.
The committee's communication coordinator (Sabya Misha) is a member of this working group which helps to keep the
website coordinated with all of our other activities.
The committee's BCA working group (who both help with the BCA website, but also work on
BCA research and best practices) includes:
Benefit Cost Analysis (Website
and Practical Practice of) - headed by Chris Williges and Lei Zhang with help from:
Sabyasachee Mishra, Rabinder Bains,
James Hunt, Brian Weatherford, David Hartgen, Todd Litman, Patrick McLaughlin,
Roberto Agosta, William Denning, Wayne Berman, Daniel Hodge, Rimon Rafiah,
Curtis Morgan, Peter Rafferty, Sarah Dammen, Carlos Carrion, Hollie Cairns, Paula Dowell,
and Nancy Bergeron.
Additionally, we post the minutes of each meeting on the committee's website.
The committee secretary (Gui Shearin with help
from Rabinder Bains) is charged with taking the minutes.
Other technology transfer items are noted above (under budgetary environment). Finally, we
also use the TRB paper publishing process to transfer technology. The two members in charge
of the paper review process working group are:
Paper Review - Nancy Bergeron.
Outreach and Collaboration
- Extend and encourage the application of economic concepts, perspectives,
and methods on major issues in transportation (including TRB's Critical
Issues) by:
- Preparing new research problem statements based on emerging issues,
including joint sponsorship with other committees on crosscutting issues;
Research Coordinator - Lei Zhang
Research Needs Statements - Lei Zhang
- Maintaining a compendium of ongoing research projects and reporting
on their status at the annual meeting;
- The committee chair writing to committee members and friends about
three times per year;
- Marketing and enhancing this committee website
in order for it to be a one-stop site for information pertaining to
transportation economics and
benefit-cost analysis
developments, activities, and best practices case examples.
- Illuminate the many applications of economic analysis to transportation
decisions by:
- Identifying potential topics for presentations at committee meetings;
- Considering opportunities for special events that focus on transportation
economics; assigning a task force to plan and carry out each special
event (see the working group "Papers, Sessions, and Conferences"
above).
Knowledge Transfer and Program Support
- Work synergistically with related economics committees (ADD10, ABE10, ABE25,
ATO10) to reinforce the use of economic concepts and methods, and strengthen and
enhance the application of economic concepts and methods in those committees not
primarily concerned with economics by:
- Actively seeking out co-sponsoring opportunities with other TRB committees
for sessions and events including crosscutting issues;
- Foster research collaboration with other committees through joint
subcommittees. Current joint-subcommittees include:
- Joint Subcommittee on the Economics of Pricing, Darren Timothy, Chair,
in conjunction with ABE25 - Congestion Pricing.
- Joint Subcommittee on Parking Pricing, Rachel Weinberger, Chair,
in conjunction with ABE50 - Transportation Demand Management.
- Joint Subcommittee on Public-Private Partnerships, Jennifer Mayer, Chair,
in conjunction with ABE10 - Revenue and Finance, ALO10 - Transportation Law Committee, and AFH15 - Project Delivery Methods Committee.
- Joint Subcommittee on Risk and Resilience in Assessment and Planning, Silvana Croope, Chair
- Maintaining a list of co-sponsored research, conferences, and sessions,
and make the list available on the Transportation Economics Website.
- Ensure we maintain a focus on the goals and objectives of the committee. This includes
continuous improvement and monitoring of our strategic plan. Valentin Vulov is heading
this effort.
Research and Technical Development
- Improve the quality of TRB papers applying economics in transportation by:
- Developing a one-page call for papers every March.
- Focus on generating Research Needs Statements and maintaining the
RNS database.
- Encourage significant involvement of the committee's diverse and young
members thru key appointments to sub-committee chairs and working task
groups.
Planning
Two working groups help with planning the summer meeting:
- Technical activities - sessions/presentations
Volunteers: Darren Timothy, Jonathan Skolnick, Karen White
- Social activities subcommittee
Volunteers: Adrian Moore, Jonathan Skolnick
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