Economic Efficiency of Railways and Implications for Public Policy: A Comparative Study of the OECD Countries’ Railways

Economic Efficiency of Railways and Implications for Public Policy: A Comparative Study of the OECD Countries’ Railways

The productive efficiency of the railway systems in 19 OECD countries is analysed. The empirical results show that: (i) railway systems with high dependence on public subsidies are significantly less efficient than similar railways with less dependence on subsidies; (ii) railways with a high degree of managerial autonomy from regulatory authorities tend to achieve higher efficiency.

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