AER Summer School 2010: Mobility

1. AER Summer School 2010: Mobility A Case for a Sustainable Transport Policy Boris Zürcher Pädagogische Hochschule St. Gallen, Rorschach (Mariaberg) August, 26th 2010

2. Why a White Paper?

3. Why a White Paper? 3

4. The Status Quo is a Luxury • It is a highly complex system, • Contains strong elements of federalist redistribution, • Tends to be over-expansionary, • Neglects cost of maintenance, • Is economically not sustainable. We therefore need: • A simpler system without funds and earmarking of expendituers, • Infrastructure and maintenance need to be paid for by user charges, • Strategic investments must be financed through general revenues.

5. Public Transport Financing: A Complex System with Adverse Incentives 5

6. The Status Quo creates too cheap Mobility Subsidized infrastructure, operation, and consumption of public transport services, A fuel tax that is hardly notable.  Creates more traffic flows on roads and rail and is not sustainable. We therefore need: User charges, Internalization of the external cost. 6

7. Traffic Service and Funding Ratio 7

8. It causes Sprawl Subsidized agglomeration traffic, Bahn 2000/ Bahn 2030, Inhibits urban densification, Encourages urban sprawl. We therefore need: Expansion stop, Densification friendly urban planning, Higher price for mobility (Mobility Pricing). 8

9. It is inward-oriented, and emphasizes equitable service provision across all regions Equitable provision of transport services and infrastructure across all regions, Neglects integration of the Swiss transport network into the European network, In the long run, endangers competitiveness of the Swiss economy. We therefore need: Traffic policy as an integral part of foreign policy, Targeted integration into the European transportation network. 9

10. Inward-Orientation 10

11. It is oriented on infrastructure expansion • Cumulative causation between expansion of traffic services and traffic flows, • Non viable in the medium and longer term. • We therefore need: • The achieved high standard of transport service provision needs to be maintained and refined, • Assure the financing.

12. Cumulative Causation 12 commuters commuters Tax deductions for commuters Subsidies sprawl traffic infrastructure Spatial planning, • Financing: • Funds, • Federalism

13. It is characterized by belief in the ability to direct traffic flows • Shift of traffic flows (from trucks to rail), • Inefficiencies and wrong incentives through subsidies and charges, • Policy goals are missed. • Therefore we need: • A Transport policy based on individual behavioral, • Consider the long run implications of choices w.r.t. where to work, where to live, locationa

14. Shift in traffic flows 14

15. Lessons learned? Again «Bahn 2030» 15 The expansion of the transport capacity with this project, given the currently high subsidies, will create the increase in demand , that actually justifies the expansion of the transport capacity!

16. What needs to be done? • Simplify the financing system: abandon different financing funds and earmarking of expenses and introduce higher user charges, • Strategic investments have to be financed through general revenues, • Put less emphasis on the expansion of service provision, put more emphasis on maintenance of the existing transport network, • Change rules in spatial planning: they need to become mor densification friendly, • Introduce Mobility Pricing (increasing price of mobility, internalize external costs), • Integrate the Swiss transport network into the international network.

17. The Efficiency-Equity trade-off Environment Social Economic 17

18. Conclusion • Not less but better traffic, • Fewer luxury inward and better integration outward, • Maintain competiveness of location, • Maintain attractive cities and natural environment. • Our proposals are a move towards higher sustainability in all three dimensions!

19. Thank you for your attention! www.avenir-suisse.ch