MIRA external costs
Internalisation of external costs in Flanders
Do we pay enough for the negative effects of transport?
Upon request of MIRA, Transport & Mobility Leuven calculated the private
costs, the marginal external costs and the degree of internalisation for
different road modes, rail, inland waterways and sea transport. The
private costs are the costs for the user. The marginal external costs
are the costs for society caused by congestion, direct emissions,
accidents, noise, and damage to infrastructure; but for cycling also
include the health benefits. These costs are marginal as we calculate
the additional costs for society of an additional vehicle km. The degree
of internalisation shows to which extent the user pays via taxes for the
external costs he/she causes.
Is the level and the way of internalisation good enough?
Current taxes and levies only cover part of the marginal
external costs. The degree of internalisation is the largest for road
transport and more for passenger cars in particular. On average, a
gasoline car even pays too much. For road transport, external costs and
the degree of internalisation vary strongly with the place and the time
of the trip. From an economic point of view it would be better to
differentiate the taxes.
What are the most important marginal external costs and which
modes perform the best?
For road transport the most important marginal external costs are the
costs of congestion, with the exception of motorcycles and LDV for which
the accident cost is more important. For the other modes (rail, sea and
inland waterways) the marginal external environmental costs is the most
important cost element. For passenger transport the motorcycle has the
highest marginal external costs. Within the group of passenger cars the
highest marginal external costs are for the diesel car. They have the
highest marginal environmental costs due to their higher emissions of
particular matters. Collective transport such as bus and rail have lower
marginal external costs per passenger kilometre than private modes due
to their higher occupancy rate. For freight transport rail and inland
waterways have lower external costs than road and sea transport.
This report is an update and an extension of the report: ‘Internalisation of external costs of road transport (2004)
reports
The final report is available here and on the website of the Flemish Environmental Agency: http://www.milieurapport.be/nl/publicaties/Onderzoeksrapporten/ (in Dutch) and in their newsflash: http://www.milieurapport.be/nl/nieuws/26-januari-2011-betalen-we-voldoende-voor-de-negatieve-effecten-van-transport/
TML contributed to the update of AG transport with a chapter on external costs. This report is available here and on the website of the Flemish Environmental Agency: http://www.milieurapport.be/Upload/Main/MiraData/MIRA-T/01_SECTOREN/01_06/AG_TRANSPORT.PDF
period
2010
funded by
Vlaamse Milieumaatschappij (Flemish Environmental Agency)
researchers
Eef Delhaye, Griet De Ceuster, Sven Maerivoet
contact
Eef Delhaye
+32 16 74.51.22