Measuring the development impact of a proposed transportation system

This paper introduces a methodology of measuring economic development impact incident to a proposed transportation system and provides an empirical result of such estimation. As the methodology, a Multi-Regional Variable Input-Output (MRVIO) model is introduced, and as a case study, the proposed Coosa River Navigation project is discussed. The Coosa River project when completed is expected to reduce the cost of shipping commodities from origin to destination, and such reduction in shipping costs will stimulate the economy of the Coosa River Corridor, the Gulf-Coast Region, the Rest of Alabama, and the Remainder of the U.S. The empirical measurement was done in terms of industrial outputs, personal income, and employment of each of 31 industries in four regions in decennial years starting in 1990 and ending in 2039