European Transport / Trasporti Europei (2000) 14/VI

In the paper, the existence of coordination mechanisms capable of achieving Pareto efficiency under uncertainty conditions (information asymmetry) is investigated. Referring to the deregu¬lation processes under way within the transport system, coordination mechanisms are modelled as principal-agent relationships, public sector being the principal and private operators being agents. It is shown that optimum incentive-compatible mechani¬sms (Nash equilibria) in a deregulated system leads to an inefficient allocation of resources unless agents are risk-neutral. It is also shown that using information as a strategic resource there is some room for efficiency improvement by monitoring agents and by repeating the agency relationship over time.

A macro, which automatically executes a series of spreadsheet software commands, is developed to find the steady-state condition of a Markov decision process (MDP). The typical infrastructure management approach is to assess system conditions, then select and implement mitigating strategies with the joint objectives of maximizing benefits and minimizing costs. Infrastructure management decisions must often be made under conditions of uncertainty, making a probabilistic model of the system useful. An MDP is a relatively simple model that exhibits stochastic dependence — stochastic in that future conditions are based on probabilities, and "memoryless" dependence in that the next condition is based only on the existing state. One of the features of an MDP is the achievement of a steady state following repeated applications of a management policy. Toward facilitating the analytical requirements of an MDP, a computerized procedure to determine the steady-state condition of an MDP is developed. The procedure might serve as one component of a complete MDP-based infrastructure management system. A comprehensive system would also compute the rewards and costs associated with a given policy and determine the optimal policy, possibly through a linear programming formulation.

In this paper, the author adopt a time-geography approach to examine the temporal variation of urban density by analysing spatial load changes at different times of the day at the communal and community level. The evolution of means of transport coupled with the abandon of the notion of direct proximity to the urban dwelling place provide the basis for this new approach to the study of urban densities. The shift towards spatial specialisation within cities has lead to radical changes in the forms of urban mobility. In just a few generations, cities, formerly highly concentrated centres of population, have evolved into diffuse urban expanses. As a result, the intangible bonds between the dwelling place and the city have progressively disappeared giving way to a temporally-biased perception of urban space determined by existing methods of transport. Density variations have thus been used to measure urban mobility and transport requirements.

Abstract: Prices signal the scarcity of resources on the market and produce their efficient allocation. Given the level of high fixed costs characterising most public Utilities (electricity and transport are no exemption to this) there is a strong case for a discriminating use of prices. The demand for public utility service varies periodically and its management constitute the core of the peak load pricing problem. A fundamental aspect of peak load theory is the specific object of pricing. We assume that peak load implies pricing far the use of scarce resource capacity in production, whereas peak load far the use of a network, that is congestion charging, is aimed at the internalisation of external costs. In the case of transport we might adopt, far example, peak load pricing far the management of excessive bus demand and use congestion charging to internalise the external costs imposed by private transportation. In the electricity sector peak load pri¬cing might be used to manage the excessive power demand while congestion pricing is just a part of the transmission pricing mechanism that has to be complemented by electricity losses charging. In the case of transport the two problems overlap since production and transmission coincide.

This paper addresses the impacts of transportation infrastructure. Various definitions, effects and caveats are dealt with. The arguments will be illustrated by a case study in Hungary. A historical and political description of Hungarian transport policy is given. The Hungarian infrastructure policy has shown an unprecedented dynamics. In the past years a great many new initiatives have been launched. These plans concern mainly road infrastructure, but also railways ail over the country. It is noteworthy that infrastruc¬ture policy is also playing an important role in regional development policy. The successes have shown a gradual improvement, so that equity policy and efficiency objectives are running in parallel.

Use of an economic metaphor for a usage of the computer aided logistic organization leads to motivating self-interested parties to achieve mutual satisfactory and efficient outcomes. Efficiency, in this sense, is maximized when redistributing the trade surplus leaves everyone at least as well as before. Simulation of economic aspects of transport logistic chain is currently under the way at Rijeka College of Maritime Studies. The system consisted of 24 different types of organizations and 103 different documents interchanged in the supply chain. The primary aspects were transaction costs and vertical integra¬tion using electronic aided logistics and electronic documents. The paper introduces results of the research showing savings up to 1,2 % of GDP for any country. The savings have been calculated for each organisation type, showing it's structural position in the supply chain.