A congestion pricing model proposal for improving public transportation

ABSTRACT There are numerous area/link congestion pricing applications in many metropolitan cities with traffic problems to decrease car use and support public transportation and there are even more research going on. These applications are based on the fact that the cost "each private automobile joining the traffic imposes on other users in traffic and on the people living in that area which is not compensated by the user" is to be charged from the user as the entrance fee. The determination of congestion price and the changes to the traffic due to the application are very important for the prediction of public transportation capacity needs after the application and also for feasibility of the project. The aim of the this study, after reviewing the literature and the projects realized so far around the world, is to put forward a congestion pricing model for Istanbul and to analyze the effects of the pricing scheme on the public transportation system. In the study, while determining the marginal costs of congestion, the car ownership costs, the trip time costs and the costs for fuel consumption and toxic gas emissions are taken into consideration. A mode choice model is constructed and calibrated with the help of a survey study to determine the changes in modal split after the pricing scheme is introduced. After the change in demand due to the pricing scheme is calculated, the amount and the cost of extra public transit capacity needed is determined. For different scenarios, the benefits from pricing scheme and the costs of the extra public transit supply are compared and cost-benefit analysis' s are made. Also the amount of extra public transit capacity that can be compensated with the benefits of the pricing scheme is also calculated for these scenarios. This model is used for a pricing application that is supposed to be on the Boğaziçi Bridge and the results are interpreted. Keywords : Congestion pricing, public transport, marginal costs