Latent class models offer an alternative perspective to the popular mixed logit form, replacing the continuous distribution with a discrete distribution in which preference heterogeneity is captured by membership of distinct classes of utility description. Within each class, preference...

Traffic noise, air pollution and electromagnetic pollution (i.e. nonionizing radiation, also called electrosmog) are typical negative local externalities in urban areas. They are side effects of human and economic activities (e.g. road transport, telecommunication) and they affect individuals’...

In Switzerland 60% of electricity is produced by hydropower plants. The construction and operation of these plants determine some negative environmental externalities, such as diminishing groundwater levels and spring flows, and a reduction in river flow, which can severely curtail recreational...

This paper applies a number of stochastic cost frontier models to a panel data set and compares their ability to distinguish unobserved heterogeneity from inefficiency variation among firms. The main focus is on Greene's 2005 panel data model that incorporates firm-specific effects in a...

In deregulated transport markets, a firm's ownership status and management system represent an important issue. Property right theory suggests that productivity and performance are higher in the private than in the public sector. In Switzerland, providers of bus transportation are traditionally...