THIS PAPER ASSESSES THE LIBERALITY/RESTRICTIVENESS OF PRE-REFORM US INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION (ICC) ENTRY POLICY ACROSS DIFFERENT TYPES OF OPERATING AUTHORITIES. THE TECHNIQUE USED RELIES ON A MARKET-DETERMINED MEASURE OF CARRIERS' A PRIORI ASSESSMENT OF THE LIBERALITY OF ICC ENTRY POLICY. SECTION I OF THE PAPER REPORTS THE ARGUMENTS AND EVIDENCE MARSHALLED BY PARTIES TO THE ENTRY DEBATE. SECTION II PRESENTS A MODEL OF THE PROBLEM FACED BY FIRMS CONSIDERING ENTRY. THIS MODEL IS USED IN SECTION III TO DETERMINE EMPIRICALLY FIRMS' ASSESSMENT OF THE LIBERALITY/RESTRICTIVENESS OF PRE-REFORM ICC ENTRY POLICY ACROSS DIFFERENT TYPES OF OPERATING AUTHORITIES. THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT THE RESTRICTIVENESS OF ICC ENTRY POLICY WAS NOT UNIFORM ACROSS ALL TYPES OF OPERATING AUTHORITY: ENTRY INTO GENERAL COMMODITY REGULAR ROUTE MARKETS WAS RELATIVELY RESTRICTED, WHILE ENTRY INTO GENERAL COMMODITY IRREGULAR ROUTE, SPECIAL COMMODITY, AND CONTRACT CARRIER MARKETS WAS SOMEWHAT MORE LIBERAL.
Abstract