Mode-Based Benefit-Cost Analysis Calculator
With funds from the Carbon Reduction Program authorized by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (also known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or IIJA), the ODOT Climate Office sponsored research by Jenny Liu, Ph.D. and her team at Portland State University to develop an Oregon-specific, multimodal framework for transportation benefit-cost analysis (BCA). This BCA framework can support decision-making by enabling the inclusion of a broad range of validated transportation benefits and costs, calculated on a per-unit-traveled basis, to support comparative assessments of the impacts of policies, programs, and investments.
The results of this project are in four parts:
-
Part 1 – Literature and Best Practices Review
Part 1 details the literature and best practices review that was conducted to inform the development of the Oregon BCA framework and mode-based BCA calculator.
Part 2 describes the recommended BCA framework. It establishes a standardized methodology for conducting BCA of transportation projects, programs, and policies in Oregon, with detailed steps for equity assessment and sensitivity analyses. It is intended to ensure that evaluations are transparent, consistent, and aligned with both federal guidance and state-specific priorities.
Part 3 is technical documentation summarizing how the simplified mode-based BCA calculator (OR Transportation BCA – Mode-Based BCA Calculator v1.0) operates, the assumptions and the exclusions embedded in the calculator, and how the main default parameters were constructed.
Part 4 - Mode-Based BCA CalculatorPart 4 is an Excel workbook that serves as the simplified mode-based BCA calculator (OR Transportation BCA – Mode-Based BCA Calculator v1.0).