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Transportation Costs in the Age of Highways: Evidence from United States 1955-2010

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  • Barde, Sylvain

    (University of Kent)

  • Klein, Alexander

    (University of Kent)

Abstract

This paper examines the temporal and spatial evolution of road freight transportation costs between 1955 and 2010. For that purpose, we have constructed a new data set of minimal road transport costs for freight transport in every decade between 1955 and 2010 for 3105×3105 county-pairs. We use a methodology which combines the time-evolution of the road network’s layout with spatially disaggregated transport-related costs: average driving speeds, fuel consumption, fuel prices, labour costs, and vehicle operating costs. The new data set allows to document main facts about the development of county-pair transport costs since the 1950s and examine their temporal as well as spatial changes.

Suggested Citation

  • Barde, Sylvain & Klein, Alexander, 2021. "Transportation Costs in the Age of Highways: Evidence from United States 1955-2010," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 597, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    • Handle: RePEc:cge:wacage:597
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    Cited by:

    1. Klein, Alexander & Crafts, Nicholas, 2023. "Unconditional Convergence in Manufacturing Productivity across U.S. States: What the Long-Run Data Show," CEPR Discussion Papers 18065, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    2. Ignatov, Augustin, 2024. "European highway networks, transportation costs, and regional income," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    3. Klein, Alexander, 2023. "From the Manufacturing Belt to the Rust Belt. Spatial Inequalities in the United States: An Interdisciplinary Literature Review," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 657, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Transport costs; Interstate Highway System; Road Network; Dijkstra’s algorithm JEL Classification: N72; N92; O18; R41;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N72 - Economic History - - Economic History: Transport, International and Domestic Trade, Energy, and Other Services - - - U.S.; Canada: 1913-
    • N92 - Economic History - - Regional and Urban History - - - U.S.; Canada: 1913-
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • R41 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Transportation: Demand, Supply, and Congestion; Travel Time; Safety and Accidents; Transportation Noise

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