The Problem: If common ownership of transportation modes is allowed, do the benefits of improved co-ordination of service between the various modes and the economies of joint management exceed the dangers of monopoly power that could be obtained by a large firm engaged in all modes of transportation? Methods of Investigation: Literature was reviewed to try to determine whether or not the logic of allowing a firm to engage in all forms of transportation is stronger than the logic of segregating the modes within the transportation-system. The arguments of those in favor of allowing common ownership are presented from a railway point of view. These individuals point to the financial plight of the railroads in today's transportation system. They argue that the railroads should be allowed to diversify to better utilize today’s intermodal techniques and economize by using the best combination of modes or a particular mode to suit the shipper's needs. Those opposed to common ownership feel that competition between the modes will be reduced and the rate of technological innovation will decline. They feel that railroad companies will gain monopoly powers that would be detrimental to the public interest. In the United States policy makers restrain common ownership and advocate voluntary co-operation between the modes. History of regulatory policy regarding common ownership is reviewed to try to determine if restraint has been beneficial to the transportation system. The nationalized period of British transportation is also reviewed to try to determine whether or not the pitfalls of this system of regulation could lead to the failure of a transportation system in which common ownership is allowed. Finally the history of the effects of no restriction of common ownership in Canada is studied. The extent of common ownership in Canada is described, with special attention given to the Province of British Columbia. An effort is made to try to determine if any monopoly power is apparent in the Canadian transportation system as a consequence of common ownership. Conclusions: Of the three approaches to regulation, the Canadian approach, of allowing common ownership holds the greatest promise of meeting today's transportation needs with the best techniques available. This approach is not based on the preservation of historical systems of transportation and the fear that railroads could again dominate transportation. It is possible, however, that large transportation companies could successfully administer prices if not closely controlled by regulatory bodies. The management of a transportation company should seek to use the most economic means of movement available, without bias toward a particular mode. If this is done both the company and the shipper will benefit from the use of the most modern techniques available in today's transportation system and improved techniques will arise through continued competition between similar firms and traditionally segregated firms, within future transportation systems. The United States should follow Canada's example in allowing freedom of common ownership. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

No description available.

No description available.

The motor carrier industry of North America is subject to regulatory controls over its rate setting practices. In the United States and in Canada, public commissions must develop certain tools for measuring when an individual rate or an entire rate structure is either exploitive to the shipping public or confiscatory to the carrier. The tool that has been applied historically is the operating ratio, simply the relationship of total revenues to total expenses of the carrier. The operating ratio is not as reliable an instrument as the rate of return principle employed by regulators of other regulated industries. In the United States, where the operating ratio is more highly refined, it is greatly criticized. In Canada, students of the motor carrier industry are still faced with the problem of deciding what cost data must be compiled before the operating ratio can be used with any confidence by regulators . This thesis attempts to study the problems involved in making a judicial measurement of the financial effect a rate may be having on the carrier and the shipper. As a result, the operating ratio is examined at some length. In addition, the thesis confronts the problem, more pressing to Canadian regulators, that of what cost data must be collected and how to collect it before the operating ratio be developed. To study this problem, the thesis has brought together economic analyses of the motor carrier industry as contrasted to other regulated fields with certain research into the development of commission and judicial thought on the manner of how rate regulation should be effected. A pioneering effort was made to collect a set of costs for British Columbia motor carriers to supplement what is otherwise a mainly theoretical piece of writing. Clearly, this thesis has not been designed so that any concrete conclusions could be drawn about how effective or ineffective motor carrier rate controls are at present nor about precisely what data Canadian regulators should set about collecting. It is felt, however, that some needed focus has been brought onto an area of public regulation that is presently, at its best, badly neglected. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

While all four of the main modes of intercity passenger transportation in Canada (air, automobile, bus, and rail) are currently subsidized, rail recovers from its users a considerably lesser portion of the total cost of service than any of the other three modes. This thesis estimates the effect this imbalance has on the passenger network in two ways: i) in physical terms -- the change in modal volumes given full-economic-cost pricing and the implications this has on network configuration; and ii) in financial terms -- the dollar cost of the economic efficiency losses suffered due to non-full-economic-cost pricing. The first element is estimated by calculating modal fares based on full cost recovery for 52 intercity routes between Winnipeg and Quebec City. The changes represent from the actual fares charged is translated into volume changes based on a set of demand elasticities developed for this thesis. The second element is estimated for these same 52 routes using the standard deadweight loss triangle methodology which measures the loss in aggregate social welfare that exists when non-optimal prices are being charged. This result is then extrapolated to a national level. The calculations show that given full-economic-cost pricing, air volumes would increase by 4.76%, automobile volumes by 0.32%, and bus volumes by 3.47%. Rail volumes would decline by 56.67%. While the changes are marginal for the non-rail modes and would not likely result in any changes to the network, rail would cease to be a viable mode on many routes. The economic efficiency distortion caused by the failure to charge fares based on full economic costs amounted to about $130 million in 1986. This cost, along with the subsidy itself, is what the social and political benefits of continued VIA Rail subsidization must be compared to, not simply the amount of the subsidy, as is currently done. This estimate of deadweight loss ignores positive tourism, energy, safety, and environmental externalities of rail, and thus overestimates somewhat the detrimental effect of VIA rail subsidies. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

Hazardous Materials are potentially harmful to people and environment due to their toxic ingredients. Although a significant portion of dangerous goods transportation is via railroads, prevailing studies on dangerous goods transport focus on highway shipments. We present an analytical framework that incorporates the differentiating features of trains in the assessment of risk. Each railcar is a potential source of release, and hence risk assessment of trains requires representation of multiple release sources in the model. We report on the use of the proposed approach for the risk assessment of the Ultra-train that passes through the city of Montreal everyday. The risk assessment methodology is then used to model the operations of freight trains in a network, wherein freight involves both hazardous and regular cargo. We present an optimization model distinct from the conventional ones, a Memetic Algorithm based solution technique, and a number of scenarios intended to gain numerical and managerial insights into the problem. In an effort to combine the economies of trains and efficiencies of trucks, we deal with rail-truck intermodalism for hazardous and non-hazardous cargo. Two special cases and a general case of rail-truck intermodal transportation models, driven by the element of ' time', are presented.

Throughout most of the populated areas of North America, the phenomena of urbanization continues at a rapid pace. As urban centers grow in population they are also expanding in areal extent, and as a result, are coalescing both in form and functional interrelationships. Increased mobility on behalf of the individual and the growing functional inter-dependencies of expanding metropolitan areas will result in a demand for additional urban and regional transportation facilities. The basic problem then, which this thesis investigates is how to acquire corridors of land through rural, urbanizing, and urban regions which will accommodate these transportation facilities, while at the same time compatibly integrating the different modes with the surrounding land uses. As a solution to this problem, it is hypothesized that in order to compatibly integrate transportation facilities with land use in the urban and regional context, the transportation corridor concept should be adopted. The concept is defined in Chapter 1 as a linear parcel of land, of varying width, forming a passageway to accommodate different modes of ground transportation. Included in the definition is the three-dimensional aspect of the corridor which provides for multiple development, including air rights. The overriding functions to be performed by the transportation corridor are as a channel for the interregional movement of goods and people and as a potential instrument in the hands of planners to influence the form of future regional development. The Northeast Corridor from Boston to Washington, and Mississauga, the linear urban area along the northwest end of Lake Ontario, are cited as examples of emerging population and transportation corridors in differing degrees of development. To aid in the acquisition of land for corridors and to assist in the compatible integration of transportation facilities with the surrounding land use, it is proposed that a comprehensive approach to the problem be undertaken by creating a design concept team. Members of this multiple-disciplinary team would represent the various social, aesthetic, economic and political aspects of land use relative to the corridor. The corridor concept involves the integration of transportation facilities with such dissimilar land uses as urban renewal, parks and recreation areas. The methods of investigation undertaken include a review of land use regulation devices used in the United States. Devices such as highways plans, zoning, tax concessions, and subdivision control are considered as a means of regulating land use to keep land in open space for future acquisition as corridors. The investigation of a range of land acquisition techniques is also undertaken and includes the following: acquisition and resale with use restrictions, acquisition and lease with use restrictions, compensatory regulations, conservation easements, and, installment purchase with concurrent use restrictions. Chapter II concludes with a discussion of the possibilities of establishing a land bank. Canadian expropriation powers relating to the federal, provincial and municipal levels of government are investigated in Chapter III. Municipal planning powers and the contribution they can make toward regulating and acquiring land for corridor use, is also described. Through the coordination of governmental powers at the three levels, it was found that both land acquisition and its financing, for transportation corridors, could be undertaken. The road building and financial responsibilities of the three governmental levels are assessed, and particular attention is given to the successful financial arrangements agreed to by the federal and provincial governments under The Trans-Canada Highway Act. This Act was instrumental in providing for joint federal - provincial participation in the construction and financing of the Trans-Canada Highway which was officially completed in 1962. It is concluded from the investigation that the concept of transportation corridors, as outlined in the thesis is basically valid and therefore is capable of being developed. For the compatible integration of transportation facilities with the surrounding land uses, it is resolved that a comprehensive planning approach be undertaken by the creation of a multiple-disciplinary team. This team would attempt to resolve a variety of conflicts which may arise. Through the coordination of constitutional powers it was found that a method of acquiring land for corridors could be developed. However, due to the successful experience of the Trans-Canada Highway Act, new legislation is proposed as a superior alternative to the intergovernmental coordination of powers. It is concluded that the financial and constitutional arrangements utilized in the Trans-Canada Highway Act agreements, because they have been historically successful, provide a sound foundation upon which to base the new legislation which provides for federal financial assistance in acquiring land for transportation corridors. Complementing the legislation is the proposal to create a provincial administrative framework to coordinate the finances and the acquisition of land required for the successful development of the transportation corridor concept. As a second alternative it is proposed that a crown corporation be created to provide financial assistance to provinces and municipalities. It is deduced that crown corporations have achieved a wide degree of acceptance in the Canadian economy, and that the creation of another to aid financially in land acquisition programs for transportation corridors, provides a viable alternative to the proposal for new legislation. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

No description available.

Automobile dependence is defined as a series of convergent land use and transportation conditions in a city that leave people with few non-car options for urban travel. This dependence is compromising the environmental, social and economic health of cities in Canada. Furthermore, it appears as though automobile dependence is increasing in Canada, as are its attendant impacts. A fuller understanding of the primary relationships affecting this trend is needed if its impacts are to be adequately mitigated. However, there is little quantitative knowledge of the relative importance of factors contributing to automobile dependence in Canadian cities. A review of the literature identifies a multitude of mutually reinforcing factors that contribute to the creation of automobile dependent cities. The factors are both cause and effect and exhibit 'feedback,' which results in a cycle of intensification of the original condition. While there are many feedback relationships that contribute to automobile dependence, some may be stronger than others. Mitigating the many adverse impacts of automobile dependence requires reducing the need for both automobile ownership and automobile use by reversing these feedback relationships. This thesis identifies the relative importance of factors influencing automobile dependence in Canada's major cities through a comparative analysis of transportation, land use and population and employment distribution trends and patterns. This involves the collection and analysis of an extensive set of data from Canada's seven largest cities (Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa-Hull and Montreal). To provide context and supplementary information, selected data from thirty-four additional global cities are also used. A correlation analysis of the data collected identifies the strength of correlation between factors involved in automobile dependence feedback. The data reveal commonalities between cities: those cities with higher urban densities, higher transit service provision and lower automobile infrastructure provision exhibit lower levels of car ownership and use as well as higher levels of transit use. These cities also have better utilized transit systems, have higher walking and cycling mode shares and consume less fuel. The quantitative findings are used in tandem with the qualitative findings of the literature review to identify and rank eight possible points for policy intervention in changing auto dependence feedback. Of the factors examined, metropolitan and outer area density, transit supply and CBD parking supply appear to exert the strongest relative influence on auto dependence. These are followed in importance by inner area density and car ownership, which are followed by road supply and non-motorized transport share. While the auto dependence factors ranked require further study, clarification and confirmation, they provide a preliminary basis for directing policy analysis. A policy evaluation framework is developed that enables policies prescribed in each intervention area to be assessed against a series of travel, environmental, social and economic impact criteria as well as their implementation potential. This framework can be used by policymakers to identify high leverage policies for reducing auto dependence.

In the early 1920s, discontent about freight rates led to a number of major political battles. Statistical analysis and a review of contemporary reports suggest that the economic importance of these issues was greatly exaggerated. They were blamed for problems which were mainly attributable to such factors as the world-wide recession, the movement of the terms of trade against agricultural producers or the trend towards industrial concentration. / Examination of official documents and private papers indicates that government policy-making on freight rates was influenced by political priorities (especially winning back the West), lobbying by affected interests and the opinions of strong-minded individuals. The King Government intervened in the question of railway rates, but its procrastination, obfuscation and reversals of policy reduced the political credit it received for the concessions it decided to make. Its abortive initiatives on lake and ocean rates were empty political gestures, made out of ignorance of the economics of these complex issues.