Economies of Size and Scope in Rural Low-Volume Roads

Deller, Steven C.; Chicoine, David; Walzer, Norman

doi:10.2307/1926784

Cited by 46 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…These weights are commonly used in studies on production of urban utilities, e.g. Coelli and Walding (2005) for water supply, Rubiera (2007) in studies testing central place, hierarchy, and location theories, Deller et al (1988) for rural low-volume roads, all of which obtain provision prices by means of engineering costs analyses. 11.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cost Efficiency, Urban Patterns and Population Density When Providing Public Infrastructure: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

Álvarez

Prieto

Zofío

2013

European Planning Studies

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Relying on stochastic frontier analysis we propose a methodology to study the technological characteristics and cost efficiency levels related to the provision of public infrastructure for basic utilities. The methodology assumes a cost minimizing behaviour on the part of public officials when planning the construction of local infrastructure, which is represented by way of a flexible translog cost function. Introducing relevant definitions of scale economies, associated with larger numbers of inhabitants and dwellings, as well as economies of density, brought about by reductions in urban dispersion, we analytically determine the optimal population densities for which average cost is minimized. We illustrate our model with the water cycle sector, including water distribution, sewage collection and cleansing of wastewater, and considering data at the municipality level for the Spanish region of Castilla y León. The obtained results indicate potential cost savings in the form of decreasing average costs, as relevant scale and density economies are present, along with large inefficiency levels. Relevant policy guidelines favouring larger and denser urban sizes are drawn, as the observed cost excess is the result of a general suboptimal urban size in terms of population density, and the negative effects of dispersed settlement patterns.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cost Efficiency, Urban Patterns and Population Density When Providing Public Infrastructure: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

Álvarez

Prieto

Zofío

2013

European Planning Studies

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“…While the challenges of service delivery and expectations of service recipients diff er from community to community, the eff ects of scale economies are less clear than many who reject comparison across population ranges assume. Studies of economies of scale for local government services report diff erent economy-of-scale rates and ceilings across various municipal functions and are sometimes contradictory in their fi ndings ( Ahlbrandt 1973;Boyne 1995;DeBoer 1992 ;Deller, Chicoine, and Walzer 1988 ;Duncombe and Yinger 1993;Fox 1980;Gyimah-Brempong 1987;Hirsch 1964Hirsch , 1965Hirsch , 1968Kitchen 1976;Newton 1982;Ostrom, Bish, and Ostrom 1988;Savas 1977aSavas , 1977bTravers, Jones, and Burnham 1993;Walzer 1972 ). Nevertheless, most participants in the North Carolina project prefer comparisons with cities of similar size despite ambiguous evidence of populationrelated eff ects on service quality or unit costs within the project data.…”

Section: Comparison With Othersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors Influencing the Use of Performance Data to Improve Municipal Services: Evidence from the North Carolina Benchmarking Project

Ammons

Rivenbark

2008

Public Administration Review

227

182

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Many local governments measure and report their performance, but the record of these governments in actually using performance measures to improve services is more modest. The authors of this study examine patterns of performance measurement use among a set of North Carolina cities and conclude that the types of measures on which officials rely, the willingness of officials to embrace comparison, and the degree to which measures are incorporated into key management systems distinguish cities that are more likely to use performance measures for service improvement from those less likely to do so.

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“…In fact, only a couple of studies have investigated the scale and technical efficiency of local road maintenance for several US states. DELLER et al (1988) and CHICOINE et al (1989) examined the size efficiency in the production of rural roads by means of cost functions. Both studies identified substantial size inefficiencies and the authors concluded that cost reductions could be realized by restructuring the production of rural roads.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Determines Local Governments' Cost-efficiency? The Case of Road Maintenance

Kalb¹

2012

Regional Studies

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KALB A. What determines local governments' cost-efficiency? The case of road maintenance, Regional Studies. This paper investigates the determinants of local governments' cost-efficiency in road maintenance for a panel of German counties using a broad variety of estimation approaches. More specifically, efficiency indices were calculated using non-parametric and parametric reference technologies, and were examined by estimating and comparing four different regression models. The results show that the disposable income of the counties' citizens, intergovernmental grants and the municipalities' payments to the counties influence efficiency negatively. Concerning political variables the results show weak evidence that efficiency decreases with an increasing share of seats of left-wing parties in the county council. Cost-efficiencyRoad maintenance Stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) Data envelopment analysis (DEA) German countiesQu'est-ce qui détermine le rapport coût-efficacité des collectivités locales? Étude de cas de la voirie, Regional Studies. Employant une grande variété de méthodes d'estimation, cet article examine sur le plan des collectivités locales les déterminants du rapport coût-efficacité de la voirie pour un panel de Länders allemands. Plus précisément, on a calculé des indices d'efficience à partir des technologies de référence paramétriques et non-paramétriques, et on les examinent en estimant et en comparant quatre modèles de régression différents. Les résultats laissent voir que le revenu disponible des citoyens des Länders, les aides intergouvernementales et les paiements des municipalités aux Länders influent de façon négative sur l'efficience. Pour ce qui est des variables politiques, les résultats laissent voir de faibles preuves que l'efficience diminue au fur et à mesure que la part des sièges des partis de gauche augmente dans les Länders. Rapport coût-efficacité Voirie Analyse de Frontières Stochastiques Analyse d'Enveloppement des Données Länders KALB A. Wovon hängt die Kosteneffizienz der Kreisverwaltung ab? Der Fall der Straßensanierung, Regional Studies. In diesem Beitrag werden die Determinanten für die Kosteneffizienz der Kreisverwaltung bei der Straßensanierung anhand eines Panels von deutschen Landkreisen mit Hilfe eines breiten Spektrums von Schätzungsansätzen untersucht. Insbesondere werden die Effizienzindizes mit Hilfe von nicht-parametrischen und parametrischen Referenztechniken berechnet und durch Schätzen und Vergleichen von vier verschiedenen Regressionsmodellen untersucht. Aus den Ergebnissen geht hervor, dass sich das verfügbare Einkommen der Bürger des Landkreises, der Finanzausgleich und die Zahlungen der Gemeinden an die Landkreise negativ auf die Effizienz auswirken. Hinsichtlich der politischen Variablen weisen die Ergebnisse wenige Anzeichen dafür auf, dass die Effizienz bei einem höheren Anteil von linksgerichteten Parteien im Kreistag abnimmt. Kosteneffizienz Straßensanierung Stochastische Effizienzgrenzenanalyse (SFA) Dateneinhüllanalyse (DEA) Deutsche LandkreiseK...

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Economies of Size and Scope in Rural Low-Volume Roads

Cited by 46 publications

References 7 publications

Cost Efficiency, Urban Patterns and Population Density When Providing Public Infrastructure: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

Cost Efficiency, Urban Patterns and Population Density When Providing Public Infrastructure: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

Factors Influencing the Use of Performance Data to Improve Municipal Services: Evidence from the North Carolina Benchmarking Project

What Determines Local Governments' Cost-efficiency? The Case of Road Maintenance

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