Estimation of cost effects for potential trans-continental railroad mergers

C. Gregory Bereskin

Research in Transportation Economics, 2001, vol. 6, issue 1, 97-120

Abstract: Following the movement toward deregulation of the transportation industry in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the industry experienced a series of mergers. One of the primary claims with regard to merger proposals was that the industry was characterized by significant economies of scale, scope, and density that could be extracted by the larger firms. This paper examines the effects on railroad costs of four potential transcontinental railroad mergers. Using a translog functional form, a cost function is estimated for a sample of railroads. The cost model is then simulated using the traffic data from each of the actual and (by summation) merged firms to estimate what the firms' costs might be were such combinations to obtain. The hypothetical costs of the merged firms are examined in order to evaluate the efficiency effects of the mergers.

Date: 2001
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