| Travel purpose | Time value (€/hour)1 |
|---|---|
| Personal | €20.47 |
| Business | €49.98 |
| Source: European Commission (2006), HEATCO, Developing Harmonised European Approaches for Transport Costing and Project Assessment – Deliverable 5 Proposal for Harmonised Guidelines | |
| 1 Please note that the values above are adjusted to 2022 prices from 2002 based on inflation | |
42 Passenger value of time
42.1 EUROCONTROL recommended values
This input provides an estimation of the average value of passenger time spent travelling, which might alternatively be spent on other activities (e.g. working or leisure). It is essentially the opportunity cost which corresponds to the monetary value associated with a passenger during a journey. It shows how much a passenger would be willing to pay in order to save time during a journey (e.g. by travelling on a quicker service or using a faster transport mode), or how much ‘compensation’ they would accept, directly or indirectly, for lost time lost.
In tables hereafter is presented a collection of the different values that can be used for this purpose. It is to be noted that, in this section, the value of time is not cited as a function of delay duration. This is an important consideration when using the value. In this case, the longer the delay duration, the higher the value. [1] [2] [3]
| Travel purpose | Time value (€/hour)1 |
|---|---|
| Personal - holiday | €59.80 |
| Personal - other | €61.20 |
| Business | €83.50 |
| All purpose | €62.10 |
| Source: French Ministry of Ecological Transition (2019), Recommended values for calculating average long-distance travel | |
| 1 Please note that the values above are adjusted to 2022 prices from 2015 based on inflation | |
| Travel purpose | Time value (€/hour)1 |
|---|---|
| Leisure | €8.60 |
| UK business | €63.80 |
| Foreign business | €60.70 |
| Source: Airports Commission (2014), Values of time used to estimate passenger delay costs in the UK airport system | |
| 1 Please note that the values above are adjusted to 2022 prices from 2014 based on inflation and using the exchange rate shown in general parameters | |
42.2 When to use the input?
This input is expected to become useful in any study that looks at the opportunity cost of the use of air transport, delays, cancellations, etc. It provides a perspective on the impact that a change in the air transport can have on the passenger.
42.4 Other values to consider
Some additional values are available to EUROCONTROL, which, although not constituting the perceived key inputs, may be useful for specific purposes of the user of these inputs. These values are presented below.
Value of time of a business aviation passenger
€153 per hour. This value was provided to EUROCONTROL by airline members of the SESAR CBA team in 2012 and is, therefore, adjusted from 2011 prices.
Value of passenger time in the US for high-speed rail passengers
Based on US DOT guidance on passenger value of time for air and high-speed rail travel by purpose of trip. The numbers are adjusted to inflation from 2015 prices and using the exchange rate presented in Table 2.
42.5 Further reading
Below are listed some additional sources recommended for consultation:
International Transport Forum (ITF), “What is the Value of Saving Travel Time?” Feb. 2019[4]
Economic Development Research Group Inc., “Passenger Value of Time, Benefit-Cost Analysis and Airport Capital Investment Decisions,” 2015[5]
University of Leeds, “Values of travel time in Europe: Review and meta-analysis,” 2016[6]
University of Leeds, “European Wide-Meta Analysis of Values of Travel Time,” May 2012[7]
42.6 References
[1]
European Commission, HEATCO - Developing Harmonised European Approaches for Transport Costing and Project Assessment. 2006 [Online]. Available: https://trimis.ec.europa.eu/sites/default/files/project/documents/20130122_113653_88902_HEATCO_D5_summary.pdf. [Accessed: Feb. 24, 2023]
[2]
French Ministry of Ecological Transition, “Recommended values for calculating average long-distance travel,” May 2019 [Online]. Available: https://www.ecologie.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/V.3.pdf. [Accessed: Feb. 24, 2023]
[3]
Airports Commission, “Delay Impacts Assessment Methodology Paper,” Nov. 2014 [Online]. Available: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/372606/AC08a_tagged.pdf. [Accessed: Feb. 24, 2023]
[4]
International Transport Forum (ITF), “What is the Value of Saving Travel Time?” Feb. 2019 [Online]. Available: https://www.itf-oecd.org/what-value-saving-travel-time. [Accessed: Feb. 27, 2023]
[5]
Economic Development Research Group Inc., “Passenger Value of Time, Benefit-Cost Analysis and Airport Capital Investment Decisions,” 2015 [Online]. Available: https://www.ebp-us.com/en/projects/passenger-value-time-benefit-cost-analysis-and-airport-capital-investment-decisions. [Accessed: Feb. 27, 2023]
[6]
University of Leeds, “Values of travel time in Europe: Review and meta-analysis,” 2016 [Online]. Available: http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/104595/1/European meta paper final accepted for publication.pdf. [Accessed: Feb. 27, 2023]
[7]
University of Leeds, “European Wide-Meta Analysis of Values of Travel Time,” May 2012 [Online]. Available: https://significance.nl/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/2012-GDJ-European-wide-meta-analysis-of-values-of-travel-time.pdf. [Accessed: Feb. 27, 2023]
42.3 Comments
When looking into the values in the table, a few points regarding the sources should be taken into consideration:
The source used for the UK values sets out a methodology for analysis which has been undertaken to estimate benefits from reduced delay time to airlines and passengers from changes in aviation capacity constraints in the UK for 11 airports.
The values for France rely on a working paper on recommended values for calculating the components of a socio-economic net present value, which include travel time. The assessment therefore covers social, environmental and economic effects.
Regarding the numbers for EU25, they remain a reference if a European value is sought. The objective of the study from which they were derived is to propose harmonised guidelines for project assessment for transnational projects in Europe. It provides monetary estimates for the values of time saved for employer’s business and for passenger non-work trips (e.g. commuting, shopping and leisure).