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Economies of Density and Regulatory Change in the U.S. Railroad Freight Industry

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  • Bitzan, John D
  • Keeler, Theodore E

Abstract

Two reform acts, the Staggers Railroad Act of 1980 and the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976, represented big changes in U.S. policy toward railroads. An important welfare gain from these changes predicted by researchers was the efficiency gain from increased densities in rail freight traffic. However, few retrospective studies have analyzed the accuracy of these predictions. The present paper fills this gap by analyzing the effects of regulatory changes on freight traffic density, through simulation of the cost savings from gains in density, using a newly estimated rail cost function, and by comparison of these results with earlier predictions. Our results indicate net benefits of $7-$10 billion per year (as of 2001), stemming from cost savings from increased traffic densities relative to what would have occurred under regulation. These benefits are substantially higher than those predicted by researchers in the 1970s and early 1980s, for reasons explained in the paper.

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  • Bitzan, John D & Keeler, Theodore E, 2007. "Economies of Density and Regulatory Change in the U.S. Railroad Freight Industry," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 50(1), pages 157-179, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jlawec:y:2007:v:50:i:1:p:157-79
    DOI: 10.1086/508308
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    Cited by:

    1. John Bitzan & Theodore Keeler, 2014. "The evolution of U.S. rail freight pricing in the post-deregulation era: revenues versus marginal costs for five commodity types," Transportation, Springer, vol. 41(2), pages 305-324, March.
    2. R. Pittman, 2009. "Railway Mergers and Railway Alliances: Competition Issues and Lessons for Other Network Industries," Competition and Regulation in Network Industries, Intersentia, vol. 10(3), pages 259-279, September.
    3. John Bitzan & Wesley Wilson, 2007. "Industry costs and consolidation: efficiency gains and mergers in the U.S. railroad industry," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 30(2), pages 81-105, March.
    4. Bitzan, John D. & Wilson, Wesley W., 2007. "A Hedonic Cost Function Approach to Estimating Railroad Costs," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 69-95, January.
    5. Ndembe, Elvis & Bitzan, John D., 2022. "A shadow price approach examining service quality in a heavily captive U.S. freight transportation market: The case of grain transport," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 1-10.
    6. Yu, Kemei & Wu, Jianhong & Wang, Kun & Zhang, Anming & Zheng, Shiyuan & Wang, Yixiao & Li, Hongchang, 2023. "Restructuring Chinese railways from a cost-efficient perspective—A hedonic cost function analysis," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    7. Fumitoshi Mizutani & Shuji Uranishi, 2013. "Does vertical separation reduce cost? An empirical analysis of the rail industry in European and East Asian OECD Countries," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 43(1), pages 31-59, January.
    8. James MacDonald, 2013. "Railroads and Price Discrimination: The Roles of Competition, Information, and Regulation," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 43(1), pages 85-101, August.
    9. Train, Kenneth & Wilson, Wesley W., 2007. "Spatially Generated Transportation Demands," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 97-118, January.
    10. Devin Serfas & Richard Gray & Peter Slade, 2018. "Congestion and Distribution of Rents in Wheat Export Sector: A Canada–U.S. Cross†Border Comparison," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 66(2), pages 187-207, June.
    11. Zakharenko, Roman & Luttmann, Alexander, 2023. "Downsizing the jet: A forecast of economic effects of increased automation in aviation," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 170(C), pages 25-47.
    12. Bitzan, John D. & Karanki, Fecri, 2022. "Costs, density economies, and differential pricing in the U.S. railroad industry," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 67-77.

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