Analysis of the Wider Economic Impact of a Transport Infrastructure Project Using an Integrated Land Use Transport Model

Major cities in developing countries are undergoing massive transportation infrastructure construction, which has significant impacts on the land use and economic activities in these cities. Standard Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) is applied to quantify the user benefits of transport projects, but does not provide an answer as to who will obtain the benefits and who will lose out and excludes the calculation of Wider Economic Impacts (WEIs) which can sometimes be large and hardly negligible. This paper introduces thoughts and experiences obtained through the design and development of an integrated land use transport model for the assessment of the WEI of a transport infrastructure project. The development and application of such an integrated model for WEI analysis should help decision-makers understand not only the direct or immediate impact of transport infrastructure on mobility, but also those indirect or long-term impacts on the distribution patterns of economic activities, corresponding land use, and resulting urban structure.