Are Public Private Partnerships that Rigid? And Why? Evidence from Toll Road Concession Contracts

Laure ATHIAS and Stéphane SAUSSIER – Are Public Private Partnerships that Rigid? And Why? Evidence from Toll Road Concession Contracts

Abstract : Transport concession contracts are commonly said to be standardized and too rigid. They would not allow public authorities to adapt them to evolving context and circumstances. This paper aims at challenging this view and, more particularly, the view that contractual rigidity for transport concessions is
exogenous.Using a transaction cost framework, we disentangle between three main determinants of contractual rigidity: traffic uncertainty; connivance between contracting parties; quality of the institutional environment. Using an original database of toll road concession contracts, we observe a great variety of provisions for toll adjustment. We find that these exogenous determinants significantly influence contractual choices.