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The Thredbo story: A journey of competition and ownership in land passenger transport

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  • Wong, Yale Z.
  • Hensher, David A.

Abstract

This is a companion paper to Bray, Hensher, and Wong (2018), reviewing developments in public transport institutional reform, contract design and implementation over the past 30 years since the inception of the International Conference Series on Competition and Ownership in Land Passenger Transport (known as the Thredbo Series). Whilst Thredbo has grown to encompass all topics in transport planning, policy, contracting, financing, data, as well as funding; competition and ownership remains the core focus and the 14 conferences to date constitute a unique resource to chart the conversation and state of the art as it has evolved in both developed and developing economies. Discussion is structured around three eras (the early years, turn of the century and recent developments) and six elements of contracting—market arbitration, procurement mechanism, asset ownership, contract design, risk allocation and contract management. What emerges is a shift in interest from deregulated to contracted markets (and back to deregulated to some extent), a renewed focus on institutional performance in line with changing government and community expectations, and an increasing desire to place contracted services within the broader context of land use, well-being and wider economic benefits. Importantly, this paper also covers some landmark ideas which have grown to become key cornerstones of the Thredbo series including the STO (strategic/tactical/operational) framework, regulatory cycles in the bus and rail sectors, as well as trusting partnerships between transport regulators and operators. We conclude with the enduring legacy of the Thredbo series and look with optimism to the future for what the next 30 years of Thredbo may bring to the land passenger transport sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Wong, Yale Z. & Hensher, David A., 2018. "The Thredbo story: A journey of competition and ownership in land passenger transport," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 9-22.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:retrec:v:69:y:2018:i:c:p:9-22
    DOI: 10.1016/j.retrec.2018.04.003
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Vigren, Andreas & Pyddoke, Roger, 2020. "The impact on bus ridership of passenger incentive contracts in public transport," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 144-159.
    3. Dementiev, Andrei & Han, Hyen Jin, 2020. "A theory of deregulation in public transport," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    4. Aarhaug, Jørgen & Olsen, Silvia, 2018. "Implications of ride-sourcing and self-driving vehicles on the need for regulation in unscheduled passenger transport," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 573-582.
    5. Hensher, David A., 2021. "The case for negotiated contracts under the transition to a green bus fleet," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 154(C), pages 255-269.
    6. Wallis, Ian, 2020. "Value for money in procurement of urban bus services – Competitive tendering versus negotiated contracts: Recent New Zealand experience," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    7. Yale Z. Wong & David A. Hensher, 2021. "Delivering mobility as a service (MaaS) through a broker/aggregator business model," Transportation, Springer, vol. 48(4), pages 1837-1863, August.
    8. Wong, Yale Z. & Hensher, David A. & Mulley, Corinne, 2020. "Mobility as a service (MaaS): Charting a future context," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 5-19.
    9. Bray, David & Hensher, David A. & Wong, Yale Z., 2018. "Thredbo at thirty: Review of past papers and reflections," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 23-34.
    10. Sørensen, Claus Hedegaard & Hansson, Lisa & Rye, Tom, 2023. "The role of meta-governance in public transport systems: A comparison of major urban regions in Denmark and England," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 37-45.
    11. Sheng, Dian & Meng, Qiang, 2020. "Public bus service contracting: A critical review and future research opportunities," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    12. Dementiev, Andrei, 2018. "Contracting out public transport services to vertical partnerships," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 126-134.
    13. Sun, Shanshan & Wong, Yiik Diew & Rau, Andreas, 2020. "Economic assessment of a Dynamic Autonomous Road Transit system for Singapore," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Thredbo series; Public transport; Deregulation; Contracting; Tendering; Negotiation; STO framework; Trusting partnerships;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D4 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design
    • H1 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government
    • H4 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods
    • N7 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services
    • R4 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics

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