Benefit-Cost Evaluation of the Electronic Toll Collection System: A Comprehensive Framework and Application

Abstract

Although electronic toll collection (ETC) technologies are fairly mature and many ETC systems have been implemented, there is a dearth of comprehensive and systematic assessment of their benefits and costs. Most previous studies have focused only on one or two short-term benefits or costs and have not translated the benefits into dollar values. A comprehensive framework is proposed, incorporating various benefit and cost components, and decomposing the benefits and costs by affected groups. The framework also is tested using data for the ETC system at the Carquinez Bridge in the San Francisco Bay Area. The results of the analyssis show that while the Carquinez ETC project would generate a benefit-cost ratio of 40 over the entire evaluation period, the distribution of costs and benefits would be uneven. Time saving is a major direct benefit of ETC. Other benefits include energy saving, emission reduction, and service improvement. Toll patrons would be the primary beneficiaries. However, cost savings to the agency would depend largely on the demand for use of the ETC system and the cost of transponders. Implications of the findings are discussed.