Value of Time Estimations in Cost Benefit Analysis: The French Experience

A recent study has been commissioned by the French Government in the framework of a general review of CBA practices. Among the various outputs of this study is an update of the value of time and the related parameters such as comfort or reliability. The communication first achieves a short presentation of the above-mentioned report and the recommended VOTs. It discusses the differentiation issue and gives comparative elements with a few other national guidelines. Then, it presents the main issues of consistency between traffic modelling and surplus calculation through practical examples, and finally makes recommendations on how to deal with mandatory VOT and how to combine those mandatory values and traffic modeling results.