MPC
Project Details

Title:	The Differential Effects of Deregulation on Rail Rates
Principal Investigators:	John Bitzan
University:	North Dakota State University
Status:	Completed
Year:	1999
Project #:	MPC-189

Abstract

The Staggers Rail Act signaled a major change in transportation policy in 1980. Yet its impacts are still not completely understood. Before making further policy changes in the way railroads are regulated, it is imperative that policymakers understand the full impacts of past regulatory change, and the implications that such impacts have for formulating future rail transportation policy. This research will enhance the information base available to policy makers, such as Congress, the Surface Transportation Board, and the United States Department of Agriculture, by documenting an important impact of past regulatory change. The study will perform an investigation of rail rate changes resulting from deregulation, with a focus on how rate changes have differed by commodity, level of transportation competition, and over time.

Project Deliverables

• [Final Report] The Differential Effects of Rail Rate Deregulation: U.S. Corn, Wheat, and Soybean Markets — MPC-03-144