Air, high-speed rail, or highway: A cost comparison in the California corridor

This study evaluates the full cost of three modes of intercity transportation: air, highway, and high-speed rail for the California corridor, connecting the Los Angeles basin and the San Francisco Bay Area in order to compare the economic implications of investment in, or expansion of, any of these three modes. This study presents estimates of four types of external, social costs: accidents, congestion, noise, and air pollution. Based on the results, it is concluded that the full cost of air transportation for the California corridor [$0.1315 per passenger-kilometer traveled (pkt)] is significantly less costly than the other two modes. High-speed rail and highway transportation have approximately the same full cost; rail costs $0.2350/pkt and highway costs $0.2302/pkt. However, the modes have a different distribution of internal and external costs; automobiles have the highest external costs, while high-speed rail has the highest internal costs.