BACKGROUND

The most recent version of User and Non-User Benefit Analysis for Highways was published in 2010 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). Known and referred to hereafter as the Red Book, this publication helps state departments of transportation (DOTs), regional/local planning agencies, and other transportation professionals evaluate the economic benefits of highway investments.  

Since the publication of the Red Book in 2010, the transportation industry has evolved significantly, and there is a need to update, expand, or even replace the Red Book. For example, transportation agencies take a much broader approach to understanding the economic benefits of not only highway investments but all transportation investments. Also, understanding both user and non-user benefits has become much more complex. Transportation agencies are having to address new performance measures associated with equity, accessibility, and multi-modal performance. All these changes support investigating the need for developing a resource that is responsive to current practitioner needs for estimating the economic benefits of transportation investments.

OBJECTIVE 

The objective of this project is to develop a set of recommendations on the need and feasibility of updating, expanding, or replacing current user and non-user benefit analyses for highways.

STATUS: Research is in progress.