Will the Train Ever Leave the Station? The Private Provision of Freight Railway Service in Russia and Central and Eastern Europe
Russell Pittman, Oana Diaconu, Emanual ip, Anna Tomová, and Jerzy Wronka, EAG 07-5, January 2007
Forthcoming in Journal of Competition Law and Economics.
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Abstract:
The railways of Russia and the CEE countries generally much more freight
oriented, and much more important to their countries' economies, than those of Western
Europe are in the process of restructuring. In most cases the "vertical separation" reform
model is being pursued, and reformers are seeking to introduce competition among freight
train operators through the provision of "open access" to the monopoly infrastructure.
This paper examines the degree to which competition has in fact been introduced, the
terms under which it is taking place, and the characteristics of those private firms which
have had some success in entering. As always, Russia is different.