Financing the Freight Railway Infrastructure: An Underappreciated Policy Option?

Pittman, Russell (2026): Financing the Freight Railway Infrastructure: An Underappreciated Policy Option?

Abstract

Reform and restructuring of state-owned monopoly freight railways have generally followed one of two strategies. Each has had some success, but the European model of competing train operating companies over a monopoly track has suffered from a lack of reliable infrastructure funding, while the Americas model of competition among vertically integrated railways has suffered from the difficulty of protecting “captive” shippers. This paper proposes a third option that arguably addresses the weaknesses of both models: the “competitive rules joint venture” already observed in US, Canadian, and Mexican port and belt railroads.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Freight railways; restructuring; competition; infrastructure financing
• Subjects: L - Industrial Organization > L5 - Regulation and Industrial Policy > L51 - Economics of Regulation; L - Industrial Organization > L9 - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities > L92 - Railroads and Other Surface Transportation; R - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics > R4 - Transportation Economics > R42 - Government and Private Investment Analysis ; Road Maintenance ; Transportation Planning

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