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Bunching on the Autobahn? Speeding responses to a ‘notched’ penalty scheme

  • This paper studies drivers’ responses to a ‘notched’ penalty scheme in which speeding penalties are stepwise and discontinuously increasing in speed. We present survey evidence suggesting that drivers in Germany are well aware of the notched penalty structure. Based on a simple analytical framework, we analyze the impact of the notches on drivers’ optimal speed choices. The model’s predictions are confronted with data on more than 150,000 speeding tickets from the Autobahn and 290,000 speed measures from a traffic monitoring system. The data provide evidence on modest levels of bunching, despite several frictions working against it. We analyze the normative implications and assess the scope for welfare gains from moving from a simple, notched penalty scheme to a more complex but less salient Pigouvian scheme.

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Metadaten
Document Type:Article
Language:English
Author(s):Christian Traxler, Franz Westermaier, Ansgar Wohlschlegel
Parent Title (English):Journal of Public Economics
Publication year:2018
Embargo Date:2020/01/01
Publishing Institution:Hertie School
First Page:78
Last Page:94
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpubeco.2017.11.006
Release Date:2018/10/01
Tag:Notches; Salience; Simplicity; Speeding tickets; Stepwise penalty function
Volume:157
Notes:
This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in Journal of Public Economics. The final authenticated version is available online at: DOI 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2017.11.006

Document includes appendix.
Licence of document (German):Metadaten (öffentlich), post-print
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