Valuing the characteristics of natural gas vehicles: An implicit markets approach

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Walls, MA
• 署名单位: Victoria University Wellington
• 刊物名称: REVIEW OF ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0034-6535
• DOI: 10.2307/2109928
• 发表日期: 1996-05
• 页码: 266-276
• 关键词: choice; demand; prices

摘要

This paper estimates the costs of a government mandate to use natural gas vehicles, focusing on the less desirable attributes that these vehicles possess. A model of producer and consumer behavior in a market for a differentiated product is constructed; a hedonic price function is estimated; and consumer surplus losses from the substitution of natural gas cars for gasoline cars are calculated. These losses are found to be significant: the average per car consumer surplus loss ranges from $1100 to $3200, with 20% to nearly 50% of the loss due to changes in vehicle characteristics. The costs of such a policy appear to be greater than the environmental benefits but may not be too far out of line with the costs of alternative approaches for reducing vehicular pollution.