Transport project appraisal in the European Union

This paper reviews transport appraisal methods in use in the countries of the European Union. A key element of the paper is an examination of the range of costs and benefits included in appraisal and the degree of consensus on their measurement and valuation. There is a strong consensus on the treatment of a number of direct impacts, where monetary valuation and inclusion in cost benefit analysis is usual. There is less agreement on the treatment of the environmental and social impacts. Recent developments are in the direction of comprehensive multimodal approaches and a greater use of multi-criteria analysis. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved