Project

ABC Software (Airport Benefit-Cost) System

ABC (Airport Benefit-Cost) is a database and analysis system developed by EDR Group (now EBP US) for economic analysis of airports and airport improvement projects. The system, developed by EBP US, is designed for airport system planning. This system calculates the economic impact of existing airports (from both local and state perspectives) under existing and future scenarios. It also provides benefit-cost analysis for alternative scenarios for future packages of state or regional airport improvements. It is designed to assess:

  • Effects of individual airports on their surrounding regions
  • Different views of airport impacts and roles from local, state and national perspectives
  • Roles of the airport system in supporting economic growth
  • Benefits and costs of alternative airport investments, following FAA guidelines

The system is used on an ongoing basis by Wisconsin DOT (as ABC - the Airport Benefit-Cost system) and by Michigan DOT (as CBA - the Community Benefit Assessment system). Colorado and Virginia statewide airport studies have also utilized variants of this system. Variants of the system have since been customized for a variety of individual airports, large and small. For instance, staff of Atlanta Hartsfield Airport use their Economic Impact Model (which was developed for them by EDR Group, as an adaption of the ABC design) on an ongoing basis.