Efficient road pricing is required both to generate funds which may be used for roadworks and to ration the use of what is an expensive asset. The important elements of road pricing theory are outlined and these indicate that both the structure and level of charge are important in rationalising road use and optimising the role of road transport in our modern economy.

• Review of Road Cost Recovery
  
  op_090.pdf
  (14.21 MB)

The cost of road accidents is an important and controversial issue. However, it is difficult to derive an acceptable measure of these costs, and it has been some years since an attempt has been made to quantify these costs to Australia. This Paper presents a discussion of the methodologies used to produce estimates of the cost of road accidents (or the value of reducing their number), focusing on the major issues of contention, and provides estimates for Australia for the year 1985.

• Cost of Road Accidents in Australia
  
  op_091.pdf
  (7.4 MB)

This supplementary Information Paper details the social costs of road crashes in Australia for 1988. Estimates of the social cost of road crashes, reflects not only on the costs borne by crash victims, but also those costs imposed on the wider community.

• Costs of Road Crashes in Australia–1988: Supplementary Information
  
  is_002.pdf
  (202.54 KB)

This paper contains revision of some data for earlier years as well as statistics for 1985–86 and 1986–87. The paper presents a broad analysis of expenditure and revenue statistics, indicating the major trends in, and patterns of, road expenditure for each level of government in each State.

• Australian Road Financing Statistics 1977–78 to 1986–87
  
  ip_033.pdf
  (10.26 MB)

This paper provides a simple method for evaluating alternative strategies for road pavement construction and maintenance using a life cycle costing approach.

• Pavement Management: Development of a Life Cycle Costing Technique
  
  op_100.pdf
  (3.86 MB)

This Report discusses the objectives of the Australian national highway system, presents statistical information and describes the application of the life cycle costing technique to the pavement evaluation.

• The Cost of Maintaining the Australian National Highway System
  
  report_077.pdf
  (2.56 MB)

Concerns have been expressed that the introduction of a national system of road user charging for heavy vehicles could adversely affect transport operators, consumers and producers in rural and remote areas of Australia.

• Road Transport Reforms–Implications for Rural and Remote Areas
  
  report_078.pdf
  (4.58 MB)

Data and information on the road freight transport industry is in limited supply. In order to reduce this problem, the Bureau of Transport and Communications Economics undertook this overview of the road freight transport industry. The industry is shown to be carrying an increasing proportion of total freight movements in Australia, with strong competition evident throughout all sectors of the industry.

• The Road Freight Transport Industry
  
  ip_038.pdf
  (4.2 MB)

Road crashes cost Australia $6.1 billion in 1993. Road crash costs account for over 90% of the total cost of transport-related accidents in Australia.

• Cost of Road Crashes in Australia–1993
  
  is_004.pdf
  (753.44 KB)

While a great deal has been written on the theory and application of optimal road price and investment policy, relatively little attention has been given to the subject of roads policy in practice. This monograph's main concern is the latter line of inquiry, focusing attention on the complex of political, legal, economic and institutional factors which have shaped Commonwealth and State government roads policy in Australia since the 1920s through to the 1980s.

• Roads Policy and Australian Federalism
  
  op_106.pdf
  (13.89 MB)