Several of the papers in this volume are concerned with assessing both the timing and the impacts of deregulation and regulatory reform in the US transportation sector. Of increasing interest is the importance of productivity growth and the role played by new technologies in a more competitive market environment. Four of the papers in this volume deal directly with these issues in the context of motor carriers and railroads, two sectors which have been operating under substantially reduced regulatory constraints for the past twenty years in the US. Although the financial condition of US railroads has improved since 1980, there is still some concern regarding their long run viability as private enterprises. Accordingly, one of the papers considers the potential for further reductions in railroad costs through transcontinental mergers, a controversial issue due to the small number of railroads that remain in the industry.

This volume of "Research in Transportation Economics" reflects the changes that are occurring in the transportation arena as we enter the twenty-first century. In the US, the transportation industries, rail and trucking in particular, are still adjusting to deregulation that has taken place since the 1970's. The emerging transportation issues focus less on economic regulation of the transport sector and more on policies to deal with congestion, optimal pricing, and the allocation of scarce resources. The papers presented represent a diverse view of transportation economics, in a field that is forever changing as regulations change, ecnomic growth continues, and our econometric and modeling methods become increasingly refined.

"The series is abstracted and indexed in Journal of Economic Literature and in EconLit."