In a time of increased scrutiny about where transportation dollars are spent, the need for sound economic analysis in transportation planning is greater than ever.
Nick Norboge, Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) assistant transportation researcher and fellow at the Eno Center for Transportation, recently presented a paper that examines how economic analysis can help states make smarter transportation decisions.
The paper “Better Use of Public Dollars: Economic Analysis in Transportation Decision Making” was presented on Friday, June 8, at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, D.C. About 100 people attended the presentation. The paper is a William P. Eno Research Paper and winner of a paper competition among Eno’s Leadership Development Conference fellows.
The paper uses federal and state case studies to demonstrate that economic impact analyses can help to increase accountability and transparency, and it proposes policy changes that can further application of economic impact analysis.
“This research topic was originally inspired by a University Transportation Center for Mobility report that [TTI researchers] David Ellis and Brianne Glover wrote entitled Refining a Methodology for Determining the Economic Impacts of Transportation Investment,” said Norboge. “With both David and Brianne’s help, I worked with Eno CEO Dr. Joshua Schank to write this paper. My hope is that this paper will continue to receive positive press and will reflect TTI as an organization willing and able to take on the tough transportation policy problems of the 21st century.”
The Eno Center for Transportation is a neutral, non-partisan think tank that promotes policy innovation and provides professional development opportunities across the career span of transportation professionals.
You must be logged in to post a comment.