Agent-Based Simulation Model for Assessment of Financing Scenarios in Highway Transportation Infrastructure Systems

Abstract

AbstractThere is an urgent need for policies to close the existing financing gap for civil infrastructure. However, identification of the desired scenarios for the closure of the financing gap is complex because there are many factors that affect investment in infrastructure. Thus, comprehensive models are required to (1) simulate the impacts of policies, and (2) identify the highly likely scenarios for desired policy outcomes. The objective of this paper is to create a simulation model for ex-ante analysis of financing policies in highway transportation infrastructure in the United States. Using the agent-based technique, this model simulates the microbehaviors of state Departments of Transportation, private institutional investors, and the public. Using the output of the simulation model, financing landscapes of the U.S. transportation infrastructure are developed. The simulated landscape is shown to be helpful in identifying the highly likely scenarios leading to a high level of investment in highway t...