History of transport pricing

In this chapter, we highlight some of the major themes that have run through the works of successive generations of economists as they have sought to reconcile the theoretical firstbest solution with the practicalities of fixing prices that are both efficient and acceptable, not least in the context of the politics of transport policy. The chapter does not set out to provide a comprehensive bibliography of the subject, nor to give a detailed review of the implementation of pricing by transport operators or public authorities, but rather to provide a framework for understanding both the historical and analytical developments which are covered in detail in subsequent chapters. We start with a brief timeline of historical developments in Section 1.2. Section 1.3 then deals with the development of pricing in practice. Section 1.4 looks specifically at the core question of paying for roads and congestion pricing. Section 1.5 examines the role of the public sector in meeting public service obligations and in regulation. Section 1.6 explores issues in implementing ideal prices before Section 1.7 offers some concluding thoughts.