Browsing by Author "Zhao, Zhirong (Jerry)"

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    Advancing Public Interest in Public-Private Partnership of State Highway Development
    (Minnesota Department of Transportation Research Services Section, 2011-02) Zhao, Zhirong (Jerry); Saunoi-Sandgren, Emily; Barnea, Avital
    Facing rapidly increasing demand for new or additional transportation capacity, many states are eagerly exploring public-private partnership (PPP) in state highway development, which may allow public agencies to access private project financing and specialized expertise, and thus save public investment, expedite project completion, or improve service quality and diversity. Nevertheless, the path of PPPs is not smooth. The confusion and controversy surrounding recent asset-monetization leasing concession cases in the US have led to widespread public concerns and legislative caution, in particular on the question of whether a PPP project is advancing the public interest. The purpose of this project is to study the public interest associated with PPPs, with the goal to maximize efficiency gains, mitigate potential risks, and address public concerns in launching and deploying PPPs in state highway development. In particular, we focus on three aspects of PPP consideration: (1) Understanding economic rationales of PPPs, (2) Legal and political aspects of PPP decision-making, and (3) Managerial issues in implementing PPP projects.
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    Funding Surface Transportation in Minnesota: Past, Present and Prospects (Research Brief)
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2011-03) Zhao, Zhirong (Jerry); Das, Kirti Vardhan; Becker, Carol
    This two-page document summarizes Funding Surface Transportation in Minnesota: Past, Present and Prospects (CTS 10-02), a study of funding for past transportation projects, current transportation funding challenges, and transportation funding options for the future.
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    Funding Surface Transportation in Minnesota: Past, Present, and Prospects
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2010-01) Zhao, Zhirong (Jerry); Das, Kirti Vardhan; Becker, Carol
    Transportation systems play an imperative role in enhancing the productivity and the quality of life in the United States. The funding and financing of transportation is a complex process requiring joint efforts of federal, state, and local governments. To meet current and future transportation needs, policymakers must constantly assess the mechanism of transportation finance to ensure adequate and sustainable investment. In recent years, depleting state and local budgets and growing capital and maintenance costs related to transportation have been a common challenge. The state of Minnesota is estimated to have billions in unmet transportation needs to keep up with inflation and the increase in transportation demands. This report reviews the funding of public surface transportation systems (including highways, transit and local roads) in Minnesota. We look at how transportation projects have been funded, identify current and future policy issues likely to affect transportation funding, and go over some of the funding options suggested by other researchers. The aim is to encourage better understanding and management of issues related to transportation funding in Minnesota.
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    Value Capture for Transportation Finance: Report to the Minnesota Legislature
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2009-06) Iacono, Michael; Levinson, David; Zhao, Zhirong (Jerry); Lari, Adeel
    As vehicles become more fuel-efficient and overall levels of travel stagnate in response to increases in fuel prices, conventional sources of revenue for transportation finance such as taxes on motor fuels have been put under increasing pressure. One potential alternative as a source of revenue is a set of policies collectively referred to as value capture policies. In contrast to fuel taxes and other instruments that impose charges on users of transportation networks, value capture policies seek to generate revenue by extracting a portion of the gains in the value of land that result from improvements to transportation networks. In this report we identify a set of eight policies that contain elements of the value capture approach. These policies include land value taxes, tax increment financing, special assessments, transportation utility fees, development impact fees, negotiated exactions, joint development, and air rights. We evaluate each of the policies according to four criteria: 1) efficiency, which relates to how well the policies allocate scarce resources, 2) equity, which describes the fairness of resource allocation among different strata of society, 3) sustainability, which refers to the ability of the policy to serve as an adequate, reliable source of transportation revenue, and 4) feasibility, which refers to the degree of political and administrative difficulty associated with each policy. Since these policies are targeted toward use at the state and local level in Minnesota, we conclude by examining some legal and administrative issues related to the implementation of each policy with special reference to Minnesota.
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    Value Capture for Transportation Finance: Technical Research Report
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2009-06) Lari, Adeel; Levinson, David; Zhao, Zhirong (Jerry); Iacono, Michael; Aultman, Sara; Vardhan, Das; Junge, Jason; Larson, Kerstin; Scharenbroich, Michael
    As vehicles become more fuel-efficient and overall levels of travel stagnate in response to increases in fuel prices, conventional sources of revenue for transportation finance such as taxes on motor fuels have been put under increasing pressure. One potential alternative as a source of revenue is a set of policies collectively referred to as value capture policies. In contrast to fuel taxes and other instruments that impose charges on users of transportation networks, value capture policies seek to generate revenue by extracting a portion of the gains in the value of land that result from improvements to transportation networks. In this report we identify a set of eight policies that contain elements of the value capture approach. These policies include land value taxes, tax increment financing, special assessments, transportation utility fees, development impact fees, negotiated exactions, joint development, and air rights. We evaluate each of the policies according to four criteria: 1) efficiency, which relates to how well the policies allocate scarce resources, 2) equity, which describes the fairness of resource allocation among different strata of society, 3) sustainability, which refers to the ability of the policy to serve as an adequate, reliable source of transportation revenue, and 4) feasibility, which refers to the degree of political and administrative difficulty associated with each policy. Since these policies are targeted toward use at the state and local level in Minnesota, we conclude by examining some legal and administrative issues related to the implementation of each policy with special reference to Minnesota.