Influence of more elastic demand models on the cost benefit analysis of road infrastructure projects in Germany

Abstract

Every approximately 15 years, Germany undertakes a national transport infrastructure assessment, called Bundesverkehrswegeplan (BVWP). It covers roads, railroads, and waterways, and includes extensions of existing infrastructure as well as new infrastructures (BMVI, 2016). Part of the assessment is a benefit-cost analysis (BCA). There are discussions if the assumption of the last BVWP are (still) valid. In this study we discuss different calculation approaches for the additional Vehicle Kilometers (vkm) travelled and its influence on the BCA.