American railroads
Subtitle: decline and renaissance in the twentieth century
By: Robert E. Gallamore & John R. Meyer
Contributors: Meyer, John Robert, author
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Published: 2014
Language: eng
Number of pages: 506
ISBN-13: 9780674725645
Subjects: Railroads; Railroads and state; History
Description: "Once an icon of American industry, railroads fell into a long decline beginning around the turn of the twentieth century. Overburdened with regulation and often displaced by barge traffic on government-maintained waterways, trucking on interstate highways, and jet aviation, railroads measured their misfortune in lost market share, abandoned track, bankruptcies, and unemployment. Today, however, as Robert Gallamore and John Meyer demonstrate, rail transportation is reviving, rescued by new sources of traffic and advanced technology, as well as less onerous bureaucracy. In 1970, Congress responded to the industry's plight by consolidating most passenger rail service nationwide into Amtrak. But private-sector freight service was left to succeed or fail on its own. The renaissance in freight traffic began in 1980 with the Staggers Rail Act, which allowed railroad companies to contract with customers for services and granted freedom to set most rates based on market supply and demand. Railroads found new business hauling low-sulfur coal and grain long distances in redesigned freight cars, while double-stacked container cars moved a growing volume of both international and domestic goods. Today, trains have smaller crews, operate over better track, and are longer and heavier than ever before. Near the end of the twentieth century, after several difficult but important mergers, privately owned railroads increased their investments in safe, energy-efficient, environmentally friendly freight transportation. American Railroads tells a riveting story about how this crucial U.S. industry managed to turn itself around." -- Publisher's description
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: The enduring American railroads; title: The ills of government regulation of rail rates and services; title: The policy dilemma of competition and consolidation; title: The impact of rival freight modes on railroads; title: The decline of railway passenger service, 1900/1970; title: Mergers at mid-century and the Penn Central debacle; title: The RRR and RRRR Acts and Northeast rail reorganization; title: The brief, mainly happy life of Conrail, 1976/1999; title: The Staggers Rail Act and railroad experience under deregulation; title: How railroads got their final sizes and shapes; title: The enduring problem of rail passenger service in the Amtrak era; title: Advancing technology for enduring railroads; title: Decline and renaissance of American railroads in the twentieth century; pulling into the terminal.