The Impact of Economic Regulation on the Efficiency of European Railway Systems

Smith, Andrew, Benedetto, Valerio orcid iconORCID: 0000-0002-4683-0777 and Nash, Chris (2018) The Impact of Economic Regulation on the Efficiency of European Railway Systems. Journal of Transport Economics and Policy, 52 (2). pp. 113-136. ISSN 0022-5258

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Official URL: http://www.bath.ac.uk/e-journals/jtep/

Abstract

In recent years, European railway regulation has been subject to major reform, with powers, independence and responsibilities of rail regulators across Europe strengthened considerably. This paper studies the impact of these reforms on the efficiency levels of a panel of 17 European railways (2002-2010). The novelty lies in the incorporation of a multi-dimensional rail regulation index – capturing the complexity of regulatory powers and activities – into an econometric framework alongside other reform variables. Our results suggest that the cost-reducing benefits of regulatory reform depend on the degree of (actual or desired) market openness, vertical structure, and the intensity of network usage.


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