There is increasing interest in assessing the benefits/costs of different urban densities. These benefits/costs may arise in addition to the time savings and other impacts currently captured in appraisal: in particular, the higher cost of providing a basket of infrastructure services, such as water, electricity and gas, to less dense urban environment as compared to denser environments has been the subject of considerable recent research.
While it is recognised that the calculation of these impacts is also still in its infancy, both in Australia and internationally, Infrastructure Australia believes the correct interpretation and accurate calculation of the benefits/costs of different densities, using the most suitable data available can add texture to the decision making process for certain initiatives. Therefore, Infrastructure Australia will treat such benefits separately to the traditional CBA.
In this context, it should be noted that the primary influence of successful urban consolidation schemes, such as Transport Orientated Developments (TODs), upon the economic viability of public transport initiatives will be in boosting demand for the public transport service. The demand forecasts for the initiatives should therefore reflect the density of development to the extent justified, which will in turn feed through to initiative benefits.