Transportation Economics in the 21st Century - Research Projects

The initiative supports projects focused on four distinct topic areas: (1) Transportation and the Economy; (2) New Transportation Technologies and Initiatives; (3) Transportation and the Human Experience; and (4) Transportation Data and Research Infrastructure. A call for research proposals was broadly disseminated in 2019 resulting in the receipt of more than 50 submissions. On the basis of this strong set of proposals, the investigators along selected six projects for funding in the 2019-20 academic year. The review focused on the intrinsic quality and interest of the research proposals, and was carried out in consultation with staff members at the Department of Transportation. The projects that were selected relate to the Department’s current research needs and are suitable for economic analysis. The projects selected include:

Dynamic Transportation Markets in the Digital Economy: Matching Efficiency and the Value of Time
Investigators: Jakub Kastl, Princeton University and NBER; Nicholas Buchholz, Princeton University; Tobias Salz, MIT and NBER; Laura Doval, California Institute of Technology

Effects of Pavement Maintenance on Traffic Outcomes: Evidence from California
Investigator: Bradley Humphreys, West Virginia University

Traffic in the City: The Impact of Infrastructure Improvements in the Presence of Endogenous Traffic Congestion
Investigators: Treb Allen, Dartmouth and NBER and Costas Arkolakis, Yale and NBER

Mobility and Congestion in US Cities: Evidence from Google Maps
Investigators: Gilles Duranton, U. Pennsylvania and NBER; Adam Storeygard, Tufts and NBER; Victor Couture, University of California, Berkeley

Does the US Have an Infrastructure Cost Problem? Evidence from the Interstate Highway System
Investigators: Neil Mehrota, Brown University, and Matthew Turner, Brown University and NBER

How is Ride-Hailing Affecting Public Transportation?
Investigators: Marco Gonzalez-Navarro, University of California, Berkeley, and Jonathan Hall, University of Toronto