When it became clear that trucking services in Aqaba Port were causing traffic congestion, delays, and pollution, the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority and the USTDA granted a contract to a private U.S.-based company to design and implement three truck control systems in Jordan: the NAFITH-ASEZA truck control system, the Truck Company information management system, and the Syria-Jordan free trade zone truck control system.

On behalf of the project sponsor, Nathan Associates conducted an economic impact study of those systems. Our study consisted of an economic benefit-cost analysis (EBCA) and an assessment of the impact of the systems on the entire economy.

To assess the macroeconomic effects of savings or efficiencies quantified in the ECBA we used a purpose-built trade facilitation impact (TFI) calculator. The TFI helped us estimate the expected impact of the systems on Jordan?s GDP and formal employment of unskilled workers.

Our study confirmed that the economic benefit of implementing the three control systems outweighed the economic costs.

Currently, the truck control systems are alleviating traffic congestion in Aqaba and the Syria-Jordan free trade zone, saving on average 20 hours per trip.

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