BENEFIT-COST RATIO AND THE CONDITION OF CONSUMERS' SURPLUS FROM RECREATIONAL PUBLIC PARK IN NEPAL

This paper investigates the benefit-cost ratio and the condition of consumer surplus from
recreational public parks in Nepal. The main objective of this study is to estimate the recreational benefits
of Tikapur Banglaw Park (TBP), calculate consumers' surplus per visitor per trip of individual visitors
and estimate benefit cost-ratio of the Park. The Individual Travel Cost Method (ITCM) has been
employed to capture the non-market benefits of the Park. The study is based on the survey of 108 visitors
of TBP administered during the period spanning from mid-March to mid-April 2016. The Poisson
regression model has been used to estimate the consumer surplus of the visitors. The study shows that the
visit rate of the Park is inversely correlated with the travel cost and age of the visitors and is positively
correlated with the household income of the visitors. The mean consumer's surplus per visitor per trip is
estimated to be about NPR 2475. The aggregated consumer surplus for the annual park visitors is
calculated to be NPR 351 million. The estimated opportunity cost of the Park in terms of agricultural
production is about NPR 8.85 million per annum. The total benefit is NPR 355 million and total cost is
NPR 13 million. The benefit cost ratio is 27.43. The study finds that the Tikapur Banglaw Park generates
significantly higher level of public welfare. Therefore, Tikapur Municipality should formulate a timely
project intervention to upgrade the quality of TBP.