American Economic Review
ISSN 0002-8282 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7981 (Online)
Should Urban Transit Subsidies Be Reduced?
American Economic Review
vol. 99,
no. 3, June 2009
(pp. 700–724)
Abstract
This paper derives empirically tractable formulas for the welfare effects of fare adjustments in passenger peak and off-peak rail and bus transit, and for optimal pricing of those services. The formulas account for congestion, pollution, accident externalities, scale economies, and agency adjustment of transit service offerings. We apply them using parameter values for Washington (DC), Los Angeles, and London. The results support the efficiency of the large current fare subsidies; even starting with fares at 50 percent of operating costs, incremental fare reductions are welfare improving in almost all cases. These findings are robust to alternative assumptions and parameters. (JEL L92, R41, R42, R48)Citation
Parry, Ian W. H., and Kenneth A. Small. 2009. "Should Urban Transit Subsidies Be Reduced?" American Economic Review, 99 (3): 700–724. DOI: 10.1257/aer.99.3.700Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- L92 Railroads and Other Surface Transportation
- R41 Transportation: Demand, Supply, and Congestion; Safety and Accidents; Transportation Noise
- R42 Transportation Systems: Government and Private Investment Analysis; Transportation Planning
- R48 Transportation Systems: Government Pricing; Regulatory Policies