Javier Asensio

Redistributive effects of subsidies to urban public transport in Spain

This paper analyses the redistributive effects generated by the subsidization of urban public transport services. We estimate a two-stage model that takes into account both car ownership decisions and expenditure in urban public transport. In this way, we are able to measure the long run effects of income changes. Under the assumption that the user is the final beneficiary of the subsidies, and computing the share of the fare that is subsidized, we measure the progressiveness of the subsidies for different income groups and city sizes. Urban public transport subsidies are shown to be progressive. In larger urban areas this effect is considerably more important than in small ones.

Petrol expenditure and redistributive effects of its taxation in Spain

The objective of this paper is to estimate a petrol expenditure function for Spain and to evaluate the redistributive effects of petrol taxation. We use micro data from the Spanish Household Budget Survey of 1990/91 and model petrol expenditure taking into account the effect that income changes may have on car ownership levels, as well as the differences that exist between reported expenditure and real consumption during the week of reference. Our results show the importance that household structure, place of residence and income have on petrol expenditure patterns. We are able to compute income elasticities of petrol expenditure, both conditional and unconditional on the level of car ownership. Non-conditional elasticities, while always very close to unit values, are lower for higher income households and for those living in rural areas or small cities. When car ownership levels are taken as fixed, the conditional elasticity obtained is around one half the value of the non-conditional ones. As regards the redistributive effects of petrol taxation, we observe that for the lowest income deciles the share of petrol expenditure increases with income, and thus the tax can be regarded as progressive. However, after a certain income level the tax proves to be regressive.

THE SUCCESS STORY OF SPANISH SUBURBAN RAILWAYS: DETERMINANTS OF DEMAND AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS

Ridership of suburban railway services in Spain has experienced a 30% increase during the 1990s. This paper carries out the estimation of an aggregate demand function using panel data from eleven urban areas. Among other results, short- and long-run elasticities with respect to both prices and a quality measure are obtained. These results are used to discuss the policy alternatives that RENFE faces in order to increase its revenue in the future.

How effective are policies to reduce gasoline consumption? evaluating a quasi-natural experiment in Spain

Using a panel of 48 provinces for four years we empirically analyze a series of temporary policies aimed at curbing fuel consumption implemented in Spain between March and June 2011. The first policy was a reduction in the speed limit in highways. The second policy was an increase in the biofuel content of fuels used in the transport sector. The third measure was a reduction of 5% in commuting and regional train fares that resulted in two major metropolitan areas reducing their overall fare for public transit. The results indicate that the speed limit reduction in highways reduced gasoline consumption by between 2% and 3%, while an increase in the biofuel content of gasoline increased this consumption. This last result is consistent with experimental evidence that indicates that mileage per liter falls with an increase in the biofuel content in gasolines. As for the reduction in transit fares, we do not find a significant effect for this policy. However, in specifications including the urban transit fare for the major cities in each province the estimated cross-price elasticity of the demand for gasoline -used as a proxy for car use- with respect to the price of transit is within the range reported in the literature. This is important since one of the main efficiency justification for subsidizing public transit rests on the positive value of this parameter and most of the estimates reported in the literature are quite dated.