TRANSPORTATION ECONOMICS

the study of the allocation of transportation resources in order to meet the needs of a society. In a macroeconomic sense, transportation activities form a portion of a nation's total economic product and play a role in building or strengthening a national or regional economy and as an influence in the development of land and other resources. In a microeconomic sense, transportation involves relations between firms and individual consumers. The demand for and supply of transportation for both passengers and freight, transportation pricing, and the reasons why the transportation system is both regulated and deregulated are among its concerns. Finally, the government's involvement in each mode of transportation differs. In some instances private enterprise is used; in others, government provides the facilities and equipment, especially if the rationale for government involvement is that a strong transportation system is necessary for developing the nation's economy or for its defense. Government's involvement in transportation has both a macro- and a microeconomic significance. Additional reading Modern domestic and international transportation industries are discussed in Donald F. Wood and James C. Johnson, Contemporary Transportation, 3rd ed. (1989). Transportation systems and regulation prior to deregulation are studied in D. Philip Locklin, Economics of Transportation, 7th ed. (1972). Paul Stephen Dempsey and William E. Thoms, Law and Economic Regulation in Transportation (1986), offers an analysis of transportation regulation in the era of deregulation in the United States. Hans A. Adler, Economic Appraisal of Transport Projects: A Manual with Case Studies, rev. and expanded ed. (1987), demonstrates the application of cost-benefit analysis to projects in different nations. A classic treatment of overhead cost allocation is provided in J. Maurice Clark, Studies in the Economics of Overhead Costs (1923, reissued 1981). Clifford Winston, Conceptual Developments in the Economics of Transportation: An Interpretive Survey, Journal of Economic Literature, 23(1):5794 (March 1985), offers an analysis of current thought in the economics of transportation. Economic statistics pertaining to automobiles and trucks are collected in a publication by Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Association, MVMA Motor Vehicle Facts & Figures (annual). David L. Lewis and Laurence Goldstein (eds.), The Automobile and American Culture (1983), explores the influence of the automobile on all aspects of American life. Donald F. Wood