The tonnage of freight movements is projected to increase by 104% between 2016 and 2045 in the United States. Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) region experiences the rapid growth of freight movements as one of the largest freight hubs and one of the top ten US cities for trucking congestion costs. Truck freight is the most prominent mode of freight transportation in the DFW region. The tonnage and values of the DFW truck freight are expected to grow by 108% and 213%, respectively, from 2016 to 2045. The rapid increase in the truck freight demand can strain overly congested and deteriorating highways in the DFW region. Freight-related highway improvements are essential to continue the economic growth in the DFW region. Despite the significance of freight-related highway improvements, the extent of the impact of these improvements on the DFW freight industry and regional economy is not determined. The objective of this research is to develop a freight economic analysis framework for analyzing the freight economic benefits of highway projects in the DFW region. The direct and indirect economic benefits of the DFW highway projects to the freight industry and the regional economy were identified and quantified using actual traffic data. Freight-related traffic data, unit values of freight economic benefits, and project-specific information were collected for the application of the freight economic analysis framework. The results of the freight economic analysis provide the monetary values of direct and indirect economic benefits from highway projects, including lane expansion, new construction, grade separation at a highway-rail crossing, rehabilitation, and ramp metering. Direct freight economic benefits of highway improvement projects include travel time savings, operation cost savings, and freight reliability improvements. Indirect economic benefits of highway improvement projects consist of reduced pollutant emissions, job creation, and GDP increase. The highway projects in the DFW region were assessed using the benefit/cost (B/C) ratio. The findings of this research can help regional transportation planners formulate and develop plans for future freight-related infrastructure improvement projects and analyze the direct and indirect economic benefits of the projects for the regional freight economy.
Freight Economic Analysis of Transportation Infrastructure Improvements in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) Region
International Conference on Transportation and Development 2022 ; 2022 ; Seattle, Washington
2022-08-31
Conference paper
Electronic Resource
English
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