Economic appraisal of the scheme is presented in Section 10 of the Analysis of shortlisted options document. In accordance with Department for Transport guidance, this is based on appraisal of the monetised costs and benefits of the scheme at the national level, including calculation of the Net Present Value and Benefit-Cost Ratio. Government investment decisions are based on appraisal of economic returns using these metrics and assessment of Value for Money, rather than financial return on investment which would normally apply in private-sector business investment.

At this stage, an assessment of the economic benefits for Gloucestershire has not been completed, but it is expected that a significant portion of the transport user benefits and benefits from unlocking new housing would benefit Gloucestershire residents and businesses. Spatial analysis of economic impacts will be undertaken in future work as part of Outline Business Case development.