Evaluating the Social and Economic Impacts of Rural Road Improvements in the State of Tocantins, Brazil

The aim of this paper is to provide feedback on the question of socioeconomic benefits from rural road development and the impact of transport infrastructure on the poor, particularly the poorest and the bottom 40 percent of the population. This study relies on impact evaluation methodologies, which are traditionally used in social sectors but less so in the transport sector. These methodologies were launched in 2003 under the Tocantins sustainable regional development project. This paper highlights the context that led to the project’s design, which included an impact evaluation of the works envisaged under the project. It also highlights some of the main challenges faced by this impact evaluation and how these challenges were addressed for the present study. It then provides details about the data collected during the surveys and the key relevant characteristics of the population targeted by the surveys. It discusses the possible estimation methods envisioned to undertake the study and provides the main results of the assessment based on these methods. The analysis shows that improved rural roads changed people’s transport modal choice. People came to use more public buses and individual motorized vehicles after the rural road improvements. The paper also finds that the project increased school attendance, particularly for girls. Although the evidence is relatively weak in statistical terms, it indicates that the project contributed to increasing agricultural jobs and household income in certain regions.

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Iimi, Atsushi, Lancelot, Eric, Manelici, Isabela, Ogita, Satoshi
Format: Working Paper biblioteca
Language:English
en_US
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2015-04
Subjects:FEEDER ROADS, ROAD DEVELOPMENT, TRANSPORT SECTOR, ROAD NETWORKS, BUS SERVICE, TRANSPORT CONDITIONS, ROAD IMPROVEMENTS, TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE, VEHICLES, AVERAGE TRAVEL SPEED, CAR OWNERSHIP, TREND, RURAL TRANSPORT, FEEDER ROAD, RURAL ACCESSIBILITY, RURAL ROAD CONSTRUCTION, TRAVEL SPEED, VEHICLE OWNERSHIP, TOLL, REDUCTION IN TRAVEL, BICYCLES, HIGHWAY SYSTEM, ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE, WEALTH, HAULAGE, ROAD ACCESSIBILITY, TRANSPORT SERVICES, BICYCLE OWNERSHIP, TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE, PUBLIC TRANSPORT SYSTEMS, TRANSPORT MODES, MODAL CHOICE, CHOICE OF TRANSPORT, VEHICLE, ROAD-USER, CAR USE, SPOT IMPROVEMENT, TRANSPORT INVESTMENTS, ROAD, COSTS, TRAINING, TRANSPORT SYSTEMS, ROAD NETWORK, ROAD SECTOR, TRANSPORT, IMPACT OF TRANSPORT, INTERSTATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM, BRIDGES, MOBILITY, DEMAND FOR TRANSPORT, ROAD USERS, ROAD INVESTMENTS, TRIPS, TRUE, HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS, TRANSPORT PROJECTS, TRANSPORT PROBLEMS, TRANSPORT POLICY MAKERS, ROAD IMPROVEMENT, BUS SERVICES, TRAVEL TIMES, TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT, RURAL ROADS, ROUTE, TRANSPORT POLICY, MODAL SHIFT, INFRASTRUCTURE, PERSONAL TRAVEL, BUSES, BUS, INITIATIVES, TRAVEL, TRANSPORTATION, TRANSIT, POLICIES, RURAL ROAD PROJECTS, BICYCLE, CARS, ROAD AGENCY, CREDIT, INFRASTRUCTURE REHABILITATION, ACCESSIBILITY, RURAL ACCESS, RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE, BETTER ROADS, POPULATION DENSITY, PUBLIC TRANSPORT, RURAL ROAD INVESTMENT, TOLL ROADS, STATE HIGHWAYS, DEMAND FOR MOBILITY, PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES, INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS, ROAD PROJECTS, HIGHWAYS, SURVEYS, SCHOOL BUS, BRIDGE, HIGHWAY INFRASTRUCTURE, MUNICIPAL ROAD, ROADS, CAR, CROSSING, NATIONAL HIGHWAY SYSTEM, HIGHWAY, INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS, RAILWAYS, RURAL ROAD IMPROVEMENTS, FEDERAL ROADS, TRANSPORT ACCESSIBILITY, PUBLIC BUS SERVICE, AGGLOMERATION ECONOMIES, PATHS, RURAL AREAS, ROAD WORKS, MOTORCYCLE, WEATHER CONDITIONS, BETTER ROAD, LAND-USE PLANNING, TRANSPORT DEMAND, POOR ROAD, INVESTMENTS, RURAL ROAD, BUS USE, ROAD CONSTRUCTION, ROAD INVESTMENT, ROAD CONDITIONS, CULVERTS, TRANSPORT COSTS, ROAD TRANSPORT, RURAL ROAD TRANSPORT, TRAVEL TIME, PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, INFRASTRUCTURES, SCHOOL BUSES, AVERAGE TRAVEL TIME, RECONSTRUCTION,
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/05/24481734/evaluating-social-economic-impacts-rural-road-improvements-state-tocantins-brazil
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/22078
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Summary:The aim of this paper is to provide feedback on the question of socioeconomic benefits from rural road development and the impact of transport infrastructure on the poor, particularly the poorest and the bottom 40 percent of the population. This study relies on impact evaluation methodologies, which are traditionally used in social sectors but less so in the transport sector. These methodologies were launched in 2003 under the Tocantins sustainable regional development project. This paper highlights the context that led to the project’s design, which included an impact evaluation of the works envisaged under the project. It also highlights some of the main challenges faced by this impact evaluation and how these challenges were addressed for the present study. It then provides details about the data collected during the surveys and the key relevant characteristics of the population targeted by the surveys. It discusses the possible estimation methods envisioned to undertake the study and provides the main results of the assessment based on these methods. The analysis shows that improved rural roads changed people’s transport modal choice. People came to use more public buses and individual motorized vehicles after the rural road improvements. The paper also finds that the project increased school attendance, particularly for girls. Although the evidence is relatively weak in statistical terms, it indicates that the project contributed to increasing agricultural jobs and household income in certain regions.