FOR GOOD OR ILL, USERS INFLUENCE TRANSPORTATION

In: The annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Band 345, S. 6-13

Abstract

A few decades ago, common-carrier enterprises dominated the US transportation (T) scene; today, though vital & indispensable, they are losing their position of relative importance. T has become a buyer's market; users dominate & influence T, for good or ill, whether they choose their T randomly or on the basis of comparative cost. There currently exists an illdefined boundary between legitimate use & unauthorized use of privately owned, not for-hire means of T. A developing concept of business logistics influences shippers in their analysis & choice of T in relation to other aspects of making a product & getting it to the market. Logistical thinking, in the past, has generally fostered the use of company-operated private carriage, but there is no inherent reason why common carriers cannot offer comparable or even greater logistical advantages to users. From mergers, as they are necessary, common carriers can gain increased ability to compete with private carriage. Also, common carriers can & should adjust their services to the needs of available freight, not vice versa. In T, common carriers are everybody's stand-by service. Adjustments by common carriers to meet user requirements & over-all equitable regulation among the various modes & types of T are indicated for the benefit of users & carriers alike. AA.