The significance of indirect use and non-use values in transport appraisal

Abstract

This paper presents results from a study that employed expressed preference techniques to assess 'willingness-to-pay' for indirect use and non-use values in the context of rural rail service. The study reports evidence suggesting that households would be willing to pay betweeen $2-4 (British pounds)/week to retain the rail service. While these findings are largely consistent with earlier exploratory work, the estimated values are subject to some uncertainty. Accordingly, one of the aims of the paper is to present the employed methodology and contribute to further understanding in this area.