Modelling, appraisal, business cases and evaluation are where technical analysis meets decision making. Modelling and appraisal supports the development of plans, policies and programmes. It underpins business cases and informs the judgements that determine what projects are taken forward, as well as shapes their specification. Evaluation is about learning lessons and then applying these for future scheme and policy development.
The Governance, Appraisal, Business Case & Modelling Policy Panel focus is promoting proportionate, practicable and tractable analysis and how this is used in decision making.
Why this matters – now
Climate change, the desire for greater geographic and social equity and the desire to support and facilitate growth in productivity are all driving the direction of transport policy and the specification of transport interventions. At the same time, budgets are constrained and choices have to be made on competing calls for investment.
The needs for modelling and appraisal to support decision making is undiminished. But there are also important questions about how we go about modelling, undertake appraisal and come to a view on value for money.
The goal of this Panel is to:
- Shape the future development of modelling and appraisal practice by taking the practitioner’s viewpoint
- Support the robust and defensible use of analysis when shaping scheme specification, establishing value for money and making in case
- Share best practice amongst the profession
Our objectives
The Panel’s objective is to:
To promote the development and implementation of modelling and appraisal practice to best inform the development of policy and business cases, including the active application of lessons learnt from impact evaluation.
We do this by:
- Developing a shared understanding of the issues and challenges with current practice
- Critically considering guidance, tools and practice
- Shaping the development of future guidance and practice
- Sharing best practice
Who the group is for
The Panel is for anyone involved in modelling, appraisal, business cases and evaluation work:
- Developing and applying unimodal or multimodal forecasting models
- Undertaking transport appraisal and value for money assessments
- Supporting business cases, especially the strategic, economic and financial cases and their supporting documentation
- Ex post impact evaluation
Members span public and private sectors and a wide range of experience – because real world insight matters.
What we focus on
We focus on:
- Modelling and appraisal practice
- How modelling and appraisal supports value for money assessment and business cases
- How modelling and appraisal supports plan and programme development
- The importance of proportionality and tractability
- Sharing best practice
Our work informs TPS policy positions, consultation responses and thought leadership.
What we’ve been discussing
Recent activity:
- The Government’s Green Book Review and what this means for transport business cases, including the scope and nature of Place-based Business Cases
- The February 2026 Green Book and what this means in practice
- Sharing best practice through TPS Webinars
What’s next
Looking ahead:
- The DfT’s Appraisal Modelling and Evaluation Strategy (AMES) will set its modelling and appraisal agenda for the next few year – what does this mean for the profession shape and how do we shape and influence the detail?
- Feeding practitioner insight into TPS policy work
- Further webinars and national discussions
Regular meetings keep momentum high and ideas moving into action.
Leadership
Chair: Neil Chadwick
Vice Chair: Tom van Vuren
The wider group includes practitioners from local authorities, consultancies and software developers.
Why join the Panel?
Join the Panel to:
- Be part of honest, practitioner led debate
- Learn from peers facing the same challenges
- Contribute to research, policy influence and change
- Help shape the future of transport planning practice