Urban public transport in the Baltic states

Abstract

This paper offers a panoramic view of the actual situation of urban public transport in Baltic states cities. To the extent to which these cities can be considered as representative of medium and small urban areas, our results could be generalized to other economies in transition. Two aspects are studied here: demand equations and cost structures. Based on the limited available data, simple models are estimated which provide relevant information to policy‐makers of these countries. In addition, these models can be used to predict some foreseeable effects which can be expected in the near future, in the light of western countries’ experience. Moreover, this type of preliminary analysis allows us to identify areas in which more elaborated data bases should be developed, to be able to implement more complex models.