Swedish transportation policy has radically changed during the last decade. In 1979, the principle of a social marginal cost responsibility for road and rail traffic was introduced. The consideration of social costs for traffic accidents was the main innovation. Air pollution was only mentioned as an external effect that could not be calculated at that time. In 1988, when the swedish parliament adopted the new transport policy act, an essential part of the new transportation policy was the principle of internalization of some of the traffic emissions. They were accordingly considered explicitly in theinfrastructure charges for road and rail traffic, as well as for domestic aviation. The explicit evaluations of external effects in sweden imply road user charges (gasoline and kilometer taxes) that amount to a cost recovery almost 3.5 Times higher than the budgetary costs for highways and roads. The same cost responsibility for rail traffic would only increase its corresponding budget about 10%. This paper appears in transportation research record no. 1312, Energy and environmental issues 1991.
Abstract