<p>The New York State Department of Transportat ion (NYSDOT) is developing a comprehensive set of measures that link investments in transportation to the general economic performance of the New York State Economy. The agency would like to understand in particular how NYSDOT investments singularly or in concert with investments by State and Local governments and Public Agencies/Authorities could improve economic competitiveness. As in the rest o f the U.S., transport systems have been designed to link, impact and even stimulate economic activites.

Assessing the importance of transportation facilities is an increasingly growing topic of interest to federal and state transportation agencies. This work proposes an optimization based model that uses concepts and techniques of complex networks science to assess the importance of transportation facilities.

As the world economy continues to grow, and the law of comparative economic
advantage takes on greater significance at both the national and regional level, the
importance of having efficient and effective freight transportation systems continues to
increase. Local economies are no longer immune, or insensitive to shifts in trading patterns
and alliances on the global level. A region that is strategically placed geographically, and
well-equipped from a freight transportation system standpoint, will profit significantly from

The vitality of New York City?s economy is highly dependent on a modern, efficient mass transportation
system that connects the city?s current and future centers of employment to the regional labor pool. The
availability and adequacy of mass transit are major factors in business location decisions, driving demand
for commercial real estate and dictating patterns in job growth. Despite their critical importance to business
and economic development, major investment decisions on transportation projects are typically made without

<p>The purpose of this study was to develop a methodology for estimating and weighing the transportation and the economic development benefits of transportation projects from the perspective of the private sector. This methodology is intended to help decision makers and the public evaluate the benefits of individual projects and clusters of projects. It may also be valuable in making the city&#39;s case for federal transit aid.</p>

This series of projects examined travel behavior and accessibility in the Bronx. The first study in the series, "The Implications of Travel Profiles for Transportation Investment," analyzed travel conditions and choices in the Bronx, where large-scale transportation and other development projects were presently taking place. Using a large database composed of census tract information on socio-economic and travel behavior, the paper first examined the travel profile of the Bronx population, by estimating travel choice elasticities.

The story has been told often. The sustained economic success
that thrust New York into international preeminence has been
closely linked to the development and maintenance of superior
systems of transportation. Whether in the leading role or a
supporting position, transportation underwent critical improvements
as one economic era evolved into the next. In the 19th Century the
Erie Canal made New York City the gateway to the frontier. Later
in the same century outstanding port facilities attracted the

<p>This document contributes to such a regional-level (freight) network planning effort by presenting a methodology whereby alternative network improvement options can be tested, evaluated, refined, and compared in an effort to identify the best long-run and shortterm strategies. The purpose is to provide a tool that metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), state departments of transportation, and other similar agencies can use for such purposes.

Momentum is growing for an ambitious round of investments in transportation projects in New
York City. At a time of fiscal crisis, and uncertainties over the direction of the economy in
Lower Manhattan and the city as a whole, new transportation infrastructure is increasingly being
seen as critical for the city?s future. Buoyed by calls from elected officials and civic and
business groups, a wide array of government agencies ? including the Metropolitan
Transportation Authority, the Port Authority, New Jersey Transit, the New York State

The New York State Department of Transportat ion (NYSDOT) is developing a comprehensive set of measures
that l i nk investments i n t ransport a tion to the general economic performance of the New York State Economy.
The agency wo u l d l i k e to understand in particular how NYSDOT investments singul a rly or in concert wi th
investments by State and Local governments and Public Agencies/Author i t ies could improve economic
competi t i veness.