Price Competition in the Intercity Passenger Transport Market: A Simulation Model

We elaborate a simulation model to analyse inter- and intra-modal competition in the transport industry, based on game theory models. In this game, consumers choose a transport mode and an operator to travel on a given city-pair; operators strategically decide on prices for the services they provide. We derive the market equilibrium and simulate potential regulatory and structural scenarios. Hence, our framework is a tool to measure the effectiveness of competition on a relevant market, to design marketing strategies or to evaluate the net benefit of new transport infrastructures. It can be effectively used with a limited set of detailed data. © 2008 LSE and the University of Bath