Chapter 3: A Multimodal Elastic Trade Coefficients MRIO Model for Freight Demand in Europe

The chapter proposes the specification of a multi-regional input-output (MRIO) model with elastic trade coefficients and a multimodal freight supply model at an European geographic scale. After a brief review of the MRIO modelling approach, some important theoretical issues related to both demand and supply modelling were discussed.

Specifically, from the demand side, an elastic trade coefficient MRIO model is presented and some relevant macroeconomic feedbacks incorporable into the model are discussed. From the supply side, a critical review of the complexity of the multimodal freight networks and of the corresponding modelling requirements is presented. From a practical standpoint, the implementation of a MRIO model at European level is reported, describing in particular both the database used to feed the model and the supply model applied for the calculation of transport impedances required by the trade coefficient model. Finally, simple applications of the implemented MRIO model with elastic trade coefficients are presented, and some conclusions and research developments are drawn.