ECMT Round Tables No. 135 Transport Infrastructure Charges and Capacity Choice: Self‐financing Road Maintenance and Construction (Complete Edition ‐ ISBN 9282101088)

Much of the current policy debate has considered infrastructure charges as a form of "fiscal" instrument for managing transport demand. The Round Table analysed the opportunities for setting infrastructure service prices so that they also provide guidance for the supply of services. It discussed the possibilities of increasing the finances available for transport infrastructure investment and maintenance by introducing a quasi‐market for transport infrastructure services. The general public impression is that charges are a just another tax increase in disguise.  Infrastructure charging that uses a mix of "fees for service" and capacity expansion criteria is expected to correct this impression, and thus to improve the political acceptability of infrastructure pricing.

The background papers were prepared and presented by Georgina Santos (Oxford University), Erik Verhoef (Free University of Amsterdam), Barry Potter (Director, Office of Budget and Planning, International Monetary Fund) and Kenneth Gwilliam (formerly World Bank, now advisor to the Department of Transportation, Florida).