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Towards a liberalised European rail transport: Analysing and modelling the impact of competition on productive efficiency

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  • Bougna, Emmanuel
  • Crozet, Yves

Abstract

This paper contributes to the railway benchmarking literature in three ways. Firstly, we used the stochastic distance function to measure productive efficiency and productivity change while considering multiple outputs in the railway sector. This method is less used among the studies that compare the performance of railway. Secondly, we calculate the evolution and decomposition of the total factor productivity for European railway. The average rate of productivity showed a slight annual improvement of 27% and the core engine of this was a 25% increase in technical progress. Results by country identify those needing improvement, to be more attractive. Finally, we use a limited dependent variable model to test the impact of rail liberalization process on productive efficiency. Results show that competition tendering improves productive efficiency, whereas free entry delivers the opposite result. Our results also show that competition and the overall liberalization have no impact on productive efficiency. It seems that liberalization process in not the key success factor for the railway industry. Our suggestion is that, in Europe, instead of focusing on rail liberalization process, policy maker should give priority to productivity gains.

Suggested Citation

  • Bougna, Emmanuel & Crozet, Yves, 2016. "Towards a liberalised European rail transport: Analysing and modelling the impact of competition on productive efficiency," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 358-367.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:retrec:v:59:y:2016:i:c:p:358-367
    DOI: 10.1016/j.retrec.2016.07.014
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    Cited by:

    1. Tomeš, Zdeněk, 2017. "Do European reforms increase modal shares of railways?," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 143-151.
    2. Badura, Ondřej & Melecký, Aleš & Melecký, Martin, 2023. "Liberalizing passenger rail: The effect of competition on local unemployment," Economics of Transportation, Elsevier, vol. 36(C).
    3. Mizutani, Fumitoshi, 2020. "A comparison of vertical structural types in the railway industry: A simple mathematical explanation model," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    4. Baños-Pino, José F. & Boto-García, David & Zapico, Emma, 2022. "Persistence and dynamics in the efficiency of toll motorways: The Spanish case," Economics of Transportation, Elsevier, vol. 31(C).
    5. Zong, Yueqi & Wu, Jianhong & Yu, Kemei & Yang, Xutao, 2023. "Efficiency benchmarking and its determinants in high-speed railways: Reference for China," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    6. Quiroz Flores, Alejandro & Pfaff, Katharina, 2021. "Private provision of public goods and political survival: Rail transport in four European democracies in the 20th century," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    7. Niu, Yanliang & Li, Xin & Zhang, Jiangxue & Deng, Xiaopeng & Chang, Yuan, 2023. "Efficiency of railway transport: A comparative analysis for 16 countries," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 42-53.
    8. Lerida-Navarro, Carlos & Nombela, Gustavo & Tranchez-Martin, Jose M., 2019. "European railways: Liberalization and productive efficiency," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 57-67.
    9. Link, Heike, 2019. "The impact of including service quality into efficiency analysis: The case of franchising regional rail passenger serves in Germany," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 284-300.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Railway; Productive efficiency; Productivity; Distance function; Competition; Liberalization; Kruskal–Wallis test;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L51 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Economics of Regulation
    • C13 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - Estimation: General
    • C54 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Quantitative Policy Modeling
    • L62 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Manufacturing - - - Automobiles; Other Transportation Equipment; Related Parts and Equipment
    • L92 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Railroads and Other Surface Transportation
    • C33 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models

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