Road freight is of growing importance for the economies of all developed countries, particularly Australia. As a result, industry is becoming increasingly logistics-intensive and dependent on a cheap and reliable road system. However, freight analysis has been hampered by a lack of suitable techniques. This paper describes the method employed by FDF Management for the evaluation of a major road project in Melbourne. This method, and the ideas and concepts underlying it, are believed to have general application. Savings to road freight are traced back to individual economic sectors, and benefits identified that are normally excluded from conventional traffic models. Five mechanisms are identified by which the speed and reliability of the road system affects not just users' on-road costs but their off-road costs as well. This is valuable because unless off-road effects are taken into account, the consequences of transport decisions will not be fully recognised. The method has three potential uses: to identify and capture the off-road savings which accompany on-road savings; to attribute savings to economic sectors so that they can be incorporated into macroeconomic models; and to assist land-use planners to locate freight-generating land-uses in an efficient manner. (A)
Abstract