IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ags/aareaj/117209.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Travel Cost Method: an empirical investigation of Randall's Difficulty

Author

Listed:
  • Common, Mick S.
  • Bull, Tim
  • Stoeckl, Natalie

Abstract

Randall (1994) argued that the Travel Cost Method (TCM) cannot generate monetary measures of recreation site benefits for use in Cost Benefit Analysis. Randall argues that what is relevant to recreational decision‐making is the subjective, and unobservable, price of travel, whereas TCM uses the observer‐assessed cost of travel. Hence, TCM can at best give ordinally measurable welfare estimates. ‘Randall’s Difficulty’ is formulated as an estimation problem and results are derived for that problem. The meaning of, prospects for, and usefulness of ordinal measurement are explored, and the existence of a solution to Randall’s Difficulty is considered.

Suggested Citation

  • Common, Mick S. & Bull, Tim & Stoeckl, Natalie, 1999. "The Travel Cost Method: an empirical investigation of Randall's Difficulty," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 43(4), pages 1-21, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:aareaj:117209
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.117209
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/117209/files/1467-8489.00090.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.22004/ag.econ.117209?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. John R. McKean & Richard G. Walsh & Donn M. Johnson, 1996. "Closely Related Good Prices in the Travel Cost Model," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 78(3), pages 640-646.
    2. John R. McKean & Donn M. Johnson & Richard G. Walsh, 1995. "Valuing Time in Travel Cost Demand Analysis: An Empirical Investigation," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 71(1), pages 96-105.
    3. Peter C. Boxall & Wiktor L. Adamowicz & Theodore Tomasi, 1996. "A Nonparametric Test of the Traditional Travel Cost Model," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 44(2), pages 183-193, July.
    4. Ian J. Bateman & Guy D. Garrod & Julii S. Brainard & Andrew A. Lovett, 1996. "Measurement Issues In The Travel Cost Method: A Geographical Information Systems Approach," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(1‐4), pages 191-205, January.
    5. Englin Jeffrey & Shonkwiler J. S., 1995. "Modeling Recreation Demand in the Presence of Unobservable Travel Costs: Toward a Travel Price Model," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 368-377, November.
    6. John R. McKean & Charles F. Revier, 1990. "An Extension of: "Omitted Cross-Price Variable Biases in the Linear Travel Cost Model: Correcting Common Misperceptions"," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 66(4), pages 430-436.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Akbar Marvasti, 2010. "A welfare estimation of beach recreation with aggregate data," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(3), pages 291-296.
    2. Farr, Marina & Stoeckl, Natalie & Beg, Rabiul Alam, 2011. "The efficiency of the Environmental Management Charge in the Cairns management area of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 55(3), pages 1-20, September.
    3. Bennett, Jeffrey W., 2005. "Australasian environmental economics: contributions, conflicts and ‘cop-outs’," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 49(3), pages 1-19.
    4. Ovaskainen, Ville & Neuvonen, Marjo & Pouta, Eija, 2012. "Modelling recreation demand with respondent-reported driving cost and stated cost of travel time: A Finnish case," Journal of Forest Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 303-317.
    5. Roberto Martinez-Espineira & Joe Amoako-Tuffour, 2008. "Multi-destination and multi-purpose trip effects in the analysis of the demand for trips to a remote recreational site," EERI Research Paper Series EERI_RP_2008_19, Economics and Econometrics Research Institute (EERI), Brussels.
    6. Paul Mwebaze & Jeff Bennett, 2012. "Valuing Australian botanic collections: a combined travel-cost and contingent valuation study," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 56(4), pages 498-520, October.
    7. Bowker, James Michael & Starbuck, C. Meghan & English, Donald B.K. & Bergstrom, John C. & Rosenberger, Randall S. & McCollum, Daniel W., 2009. "Estimating the Net Economic Value of National Forest Recreation: An Application of the National Visitor Use Monitoring Database," Faculty Series 59603, University of Georgia, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics.
    8. van Rensburg, Tom M. & Mill, Greig A. & Common, Mick & Lovett, Jon, 2002. "Preferences and multiple use forest management," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(2-3), pages 231-244, December.
    9. Chun-Chu Yeh & Cheng-Shen Lin & Chin-Huang Huang, 2018. "The Total Economic Value of Sport Tourism in Belt and Road Development—An Environmental Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-14, April.
    10. Chin-Huang Huang & Chiung-Hsia Wang, 2015. "Estimating the Total Economic Value of Cultivated Flower Land in Taiwan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(4), pages 1-19, April.
    11. Natalie Stoeckl, 2003. "Measurement error and functional form: implications for welfare estimates," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(5), pages 259-270, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ovaskainen, Ville & Neuvonen, Marjo & Pouta, Eija, 2012. "Modelling recreation demand with respondent-reported driving cost and stated cost of travel time: A Finnish case," Journal of Forest Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 303-317.
    2. Phaneuf, Daniel J. & Smith, V. Kerry, 2006. "Recreation Demand Models," Handbook of Environmental Economics, in: K. G. Mäler & J. R. Vincent (ed.), Handbook of Environmental Economics, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 15, pages 671-761, Elsevier.
    3. Amoako-Tuffour, Joe & Martınez-Espineira, Roberto, 2008. "Leisure and the Opportunity Cost of Travel Time in Recreation Demand Analysis: A Re-Examination," MPRA Paper 8573, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Catherine Heyes & Anthony Heyes, 1999. "Willingness to Pay Versus Willingness to Travel: Assessing the Recreational Benefits from Dartmoor National Park," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(1), pages 124-139, January.
    5. Crooker, John R., 2007. "Nonparametric Bounds on Welfare with Measurement Error in Prices: Techniques for Non-Market Resource Valuation," Agricultural and Resource Economics Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 36(2), pages 239-252, October.
    6. Bengochea, A., 2003. "Valoración del uso recreativo de un espacio natural," Estudios de Economia Aplicada, Estudios de Economia Aplicada, vol. 21, pages 321-338, Agosto.
    7. McKean, John R. & Johnson, Donn M. & Taylor, R. Garth, 2001. "The Value Of Sport Fishing In The Snake River Basin Of Central Idaho," 2001 Annual Meeting, July 8-11, 2001, Logan, Utah 36190, Western Agricultural Economics Association.
    8. Johnson, Donn M. & McKean, John R. & Taylor, R. Garth, 2000. "Estimating The Value Of Recreation On The Snake River Reservoirs Using A Disequilibrium Travel Cost Model," 2000 Annual Meeting, June 29-July 1, 2000, Vancouver, British Columbia 36523, Western Agricultural Economics Association.
    9. Kevin E. Henrickson & Erica H. Johnson, 2013. "The Demand for Spatially Complementary National Parks," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 89(2), pages 330-345.
    10. Natalie Stoeckl & Trevor Mules, 2006. "A Travel Cost Analysis of the Australian Alps," Tourism Economics, , vol. 12(4), pages 495-518, December.
    11. Danielle Hagerty & Klaus Moeltner, 2005. "Specification of Driving Costs in Models of Recreation Demand," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 81(1).
    12. D M Hanink & K White, 1999. "Distance Effects in the Demand for Wildland Recreational Services: The Case of National Parks in the United States," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 31(3), pages 477-492, March.
    13. Parroco, Anna Maria & Vaccina, Franco & De Cantis, Stefano & Ferrante, Mauro, 2012. "Multi-destination trips and tourism statistics: Empirical evidences in Sicily," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 6, pages 1-27.
    14. Chin†Huang Huang, 2017. "Estimating the environmental effects and recreational benefits of cultivated flower land for environmental quality improvement in Taiwan," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 48(1), pages 29-39, January.
    15. Beal, Diana J., 1995. "A Travel Cost Analysis of the Value of Carnarvon Gorge National Park for Recreational Use," Review of Marketing and Agricultural Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 63(02), pages 1-12, August.
    16. Juan Brida & Marta Disegna & Raffaele Scuderi, 2014. "The behaviour of repeat visitors to museums: review and empirical findings," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 48(5), pages 2817-2840, September.
    17. Raúl Bajo-Buenestado, 2021. "Market prices, spatial distribution of consumers and firms’ optimal locations in a linear city," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 61(1), pages 443-467, July.
    18. K. Willis & J. Snowball & C. Wymer & José Grisolía, 2012. "A count data travel cost model of theatre demand using aggregate theatre booking data," Journal of Cultural Economics, Springer;The Association for Cultural Economics International, vol. 36(2), pages 91-112, May.
    19. Jeffrey Englin & Klaus Moeltner, 2004. "The Value of Snowfall to Skiers and Boarders," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 29(1), pages 123-136, September.
    20. Pang, Arwin, 2017. "Incorporating the effect of successfully bagging big game into recreational hunting: An examination of deer, moose and elk hunting," Journal of Forest Economics, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 12-17.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Research Methods/ Statistical Methods;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ags:aareaj:117209. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: AgEcon Search (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaresea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.