Volume 22 (2022): Edition 4 (December 2022)

The interaction of debt and economic performance has been getting more attention over the last few years. However, models making provision for debt are still outnumbered by models completely ignoring it. This paper is the first one to analyze the relationship between household debt (in the form of bank loans) and economic performance (in terms of aggregate income) considering both the impact of wealth and income distribution, and the impact of the MPC distribution under various financial shocks. The outcomes of the model are velocities calculated as ratios of aggregate income to aggregate debt. The paper demonstrates how financial shocks affect the income velocity of money under different distributions of wealth/income and marginal propensity to consume across the population. For this purpose, an original agent-based simulation model with a limited loan supply was designed. Proposed model shocks are shocks to loan demand, loan supply, marginal propensity to consume, macro-prudential regulatory ratios, real estate capital gains, repayment ratios, shocks to the structure of loans provided and to the structure of real estate property transactions. It is shown that the more equal the distributions of wealth/income and of the marginal propensity to consume, the higher is the income velocity of money. From financial shocks, the marginal propensity to consume shock and the shock to the structure of new real estate property purchases have the largest impact on velocity. The shock to regulatory ratios has generally the lowest magnitude.

Reducing travel speed below the highway speed limit leads to savings in fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions. However, car drivers may be reluctant to drive more slowly either because they do not want to lose time or for other reasons we refer to as ‘the disutility of driving at lower speeds’. In this paper, we use a survey experiment to isolate the disutility of driving at lower speeds by comparing drivers’ willingness to accept compensation for a fixed increase in travel time caused either by taking a longer route or by travelling at below-limit speeds. We show that Czech drivers require higher compensation for travelling at lower speeds than they require for the same travel time increment caused by a longer distance. This result represents the first piece of evidence showing that the disutility of driving at below-limit speeds on a highway is substantial and economically relevant.

This article analyses occasional work commuting mobility within three major metropolitan areas in Czechia in the context of future HSR routes. The main aim is to explain uneven commuting flows of inter-metropolitan travelers through their level of income, given their potential for the use of HSR from a demand perspective. To achieve the goals, the paper uses quantitative data analysis methods performed on a selection of 228 respondents who realized at least one business trip between Prague and Brno or Prague and Ostrava between January and September 2019. The results reveal that the level of income plays a significant role in the issue of using potential high-speed lines for occasional long-distance commutes.

This paper investigates the transport policy development and characteristics of the Austrian passenger transport sector from the 1950s onwards. The analysed performance indicators deal with the three most prevalent modes of transport (cars, trains and airplanes) and are linked to independent decision-making units (passengers) and their motives (price, quality and time to destination) as well as to goals and decisions involved in government policies. In this theoretical framework, we identified three developmental phases, using an interdisciplinary approach to assess the development of three variables of interest (number of car, air and train passengers). In the long term, transport policy aimed to solve the rigidity and lack of vision in train transport and the extensive use of cars. Air transport was a steadily growing segment in a close and positive relationship with trains, which is in line with the transport political orientation towards Vienna Airport and train connections to the capital city. The post-war phase (1945–1970) was characterised by enormous growth in the number of cars, an upswing in air transport and stagnant train transport. The second phase (1970–1994) was defined by a progressive liberalisation of rail transport and a plan to balance the growth rates of car, train and airplane performance variables. Finally, in the 1995–2019 phase, the growth in train transport increased; however, this growth remained far below the growth rates of air and car performance variables. Transport policy achievements and shortcomings for future research are suggested.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected many aspects of our everyday lives. Governments have taken numerous measures to contain the spread of the pandemic, which has had a direct impact on daily mobility, modal choice and the function of public transport. This study uses quantitative and qualitative data to describe how the pandemic influenced travel on the Prague-Pilsen (Praha-Plzeň) railway line. The results of the case study on the Prague-Pilsen railway line are consistent with experiences in other countries. 38% decrease in passenger numbers was found between 2019 and 2020. Although numbers are increasing again, they still have not reached the pre-pandemic level. The number of connections has also decreased by a third on average (2019 to 2020). We also conducted in-depth interviews with train passengers on the above-mentioned route. Two-thirds of passengers stated that the frequency of their journeys had not been affected by the pandemic. However, like the other participants, they described other changes caused by the pandemic. Fear of infection played an important role, and the inconvenience of overcrowding was mentioned several times. The switch from buses to trains was mentioned, as was the fact that more and more travellers prefer to travel first class. In some cases, changes in the temporality of trips were also documented. The survey suggests that respondents travel less frequently by train for systematic, functional, health or social reasons.