ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the general question of whether, in advanced economies, transport infrastructure investments can engender economic development at the regional level, or merely facilitate its attainment when and if it transpires. As economic growth is a long-term phenomenon, to regard short-term multiplier effects as contributing to economic growth negates its basic definition, and the longer-term effects are less clear in both their scale and impact. Hence, in general transport development serves as a growth supporter and not as a growth generator. At least three types of policies are vital for the attainment of potential development benefits. The first is investment policy, which determines attributes such as mode type, the investment's scale, facility location and function in the larger network. Second, there is the regional economic policy, which influences firms' location, labour market conditions and land market economies. Lastly, there is the general public policy-making whose essential task is to resolve conflicts among stakeholders.
