Transportation Economic Indicators
The IIA program maintains a set of economic indicators used to track economic trends in the State of Texas. These include: transportation related indicators, such as the Highway Cost Index, air travel, fuel prices, and transportation related tax revenues; energy related indicators including oil prices, and Texas oil production statistics; housing indicators including home prices and inventory; and general economic indicators, such as unemployment statistics, interest rates, and Texas state tax revenues. These indicators have been used to inform stakeholders on the ever changing nature of the Texas economy, especially with regards to Covid-19 related disruptions. If you are interested in receiving a copy of the indicators please contact Max Steadman.
TRENDS Model
The TRENDS model is designed to provide transportation planners, policy makers, and the public with a tool to forecast revenues and expenses for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) for the period 2010 through 2035 based on a user-defined level of transportation investment. The user, through interactive windows, can control a number of variables related to assumptions regarding statewide transportation needs, population growth rates, fuel efficiency, federal reimbursement rates, inflation rates, taxes, fees, and other elements. The output is a set of tables and graphs showing a forecast of revenues, expenditures, and fund balances for each year of the analysis period based on the user-defined assumptions.
Since the inception of the TRENDS model, there has been a desire to incorporate the ability to estimate the economic impacts of transportation improvements, allowing decision-makers and the public to have a more defined portrayal of the potential economic and performance improvement outcomes associated with investment decisions. TTI is currently working on developing an economic impact model producing economic and mobility results at the MPO level, allowing the “local-option” function of the TRENDS model to be joined with an economic impact assessment tool.
- http://trends-tti.tamu.edu/
- D.R. Ellis, B.A. Glover, N.D. Norboge. Development of the Transportation Revenue Estimator and Needs Determination System (TRENDS) Forecasting Model: MPO Sub-Models and Maintenance. 5-6395-01-1. Texas A&M Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. November 2011.
- D.R. Ellis, B.A. Glover, N.D. Norboge, Y. Zhi. Development of the Texas Revenue Estimator and Needs Determination System (T.R.E.N.D.S.) Model: FY 2010 Activities. 0-6395-TI-2. Texas A&M Transportation Institute, College Station, TX. July 2010.
Vehicle Sample Data RUC Case Study, Texas Department of Transportation
The concept of mileage-based user fees has increased in popularity in recent years. Because of this, Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) has been tasked with performing a case study for a road user charge. A literature review regarding road user charges will be conducted, which will include a discussion of past, ongoing, and planned RUC pilots and programs. Once completing this, the research team will estimate the potential revenue output for a range of fee scenarios, including a variable RUC, using traffic count data from the Texas Department of Transportation and vehicle registration data included in the TRENDS Model. These revenue estimates will be conducted for a major metropolitan area, a medium urban area, and a smaller urban/suburban area that are within the state of Texas.