Efficient versus non-efficient stated choice designs: A comparison in a mode choice context

Abstract

This paper evaluates efficiency gains produced by efficient designs to analyze Stated Choice (SC) data. Based on an empirical experiment, conducted in the context of the choice between taking the plane or the new high speed train on the Madrid-Barcelona route, we compare the performance of this design with that of the efficient design obtained through minimization of the D-error, considering different modelling strategies. The results of the analysis demonstrate that substantial gains in the significance level of the parameter estimates could have been attained if the efficient design had been used to analyze SC data.