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CEI Submits Comments to DOT on Aviation Consumer Protection Authority Modernization
Today, CEI submitted comments in response to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s notice of proposed rulemaking in the matter of Defining Unfair or Deceptive Practices.
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House Democrats Dust off January Infrastructure Wish List as Faux-Response to Coronavirus Crisis
House Democrats announced a coronavirus infrastructure response as part of a “phase 4” relief bill. A transportation infrastructure stimulus package makes no sense as a…
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New York Times Explains Foolishness of Trump’s General Motors Nationalization
Last Friday, President Trump nationalized General Motors, ordering the company to produce as many ventilators as HHS Secretary Alex Azar says is necessary to address…
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Transportation Infrastructure Stimulus Is No Cure for Coronavirus Economic Slump
As we enter a new era of slapdash bailouts driven by a dangerous mix of panic, ignorance, and opportunism, we face a growing list of…
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CEI Comments to FCC on Proposed Reallocation of 5.9 GHz Band
On March 9, CEI submitted comments to the FCC on its proposal to reallocate a portion of the 5.9 GHz band from Intelligent Transportation Systems…
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U.S. Department of Transportation Proposes Modernizing its Aviation Consumer Protection Authority
Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao announced a new proposed rule that would “align its definitions of unfairness and deception with the principles set forth by…
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Department of Homeland Security’s “Trusted Traveler” Programs Now Privilege Mexican Nationals over U.S. Citizens from New York
Late yesterday, it was reported that the Department of Homeland Security has suspended entry of New Yorkers into four “trusted traveler” programs. Today, the department…
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CEI Leads Coalition in Support of the Revamping American Infrastructure Act of 2020
Today, CEI was joined by 10 other organizations in a letter to members of the House of Representatives supporting the Revamping American Infrastructure Act of…
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Year in Review 2019: Transportation
The Competitive Enterprise Institute had a busy year in the transportation policy trenches. We worked at the federal, state, and local levels on a variety…
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CEI Leads Coalition to Congress Urging Close Oversight over Possible New Railroad Price Controls
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) led a group of scholars and advocates from 13 free market organizations urging Congress to exercise close oversight over…
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Remembering Transportation Economist Shirley Ybarra
On November 10th, longtime CEI friend Shirley Ybarra passed away. Shirley was an accomplished transportation economist and a leading thinker on innovative transportation infrastructure finance…
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CEI Leads Coalition Letter Supporting Airport Financing Reform
Today CEI led a coalition letter in support of H.R. 3791, the “Investing in America: Rebuilding America’s Airport Infrastructure Act,” the bipartisan airport financing reform legislation…
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Federal Highway Administration to Rescind Outdated Patent Rules
The Federal Highway Administration announced it will rescind its World War I-era regulation governing the use of patented and proprietary materials in federal-aid highway projects.
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Unleash Markets to Reduce Traffic Congestion
Congestion is a persistent and growing problem facing America’s road networks. The challenge facing policy makers is how to address this growing problem. Given that…
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Modernizing Passenger Facility Charge Can Promote Airport Investment, Reduce Federal Spending
The passenger facility charge (PFC) is a local airport user fee that serves as an important revenue tool with less federal meddling than its primary…
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CEI Leads Coalition in Support of Bipartisan Passenger Facility Charge Reform
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) sent a letter to House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leadership supporting the bipartisan H.R. 3791, Investing in America: Rebuilding…
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Uniform Law Commission Can Improve Uniform Automated Operation of Vehicles Act
After two years of work, last week the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) published its model state legislation on automated vehicles. By and large, ULC’s Uniform…
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CEI Releases ‘Authorizing Automated Vehicle Platooning, 2019 Edition’
CEI has released my fourth annual report on state barriers to vehicle platooning, “Authorizing Automated Vehicle Platooning: A Guide for State Legislators, 2019 Edition” (read the 2018…
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Surface Transportation Board Delays Consideration of Regulatory Reform Petition
Yesterday, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) published a decision on a March 2019 rulemaking petition from the Association from American Railroads (AAR). The AAR petition…
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Congress Should Authorize Longer Trailers When Reforming National Highway Policy
In 1982, when Congress designated the National Network—the approximately 200,000 miles of truck corridors that crisscross the U.S.—it also set a 28.5-foot minimum limit on tandem…
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Remove Government Barriers to Promote Efficient Highway Investment
Today the Competitive Enterprise Institute released my new report, “Transforming Surface Transportation Reauthorization: A 21st Century Approach to Address America’s Greatest Infrastructure Challenge.” In it, I…
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Federal Railroad Administration Withdraws Proposed ‘Featherbedding’ Train Crew Rule
Today, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) released a draft notice indicating that it will be withdrawing a 2016 proposed rule that would have required trains…
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Focus Ride-Hailing Policy on Consumer Benefits, Not Protecting Competitors
As we pointed out last year when New York City attacked Uber, Lyft, and other ride-hailing firms by imposing an interim supply cap, politicians fighting…
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Bloomberg Reporter Justin Bachman Gets Duped by TripAdvisor Front Group
I wrote back in November 2018 of the false, scurrilous, ad hominem attacks on Competitive Enterprise Institute Adjunct Fellow Fran Smith’s appointment as consumer representative…
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CEI Leads Free-Market Coalition to Dispel Passenger Facility Charge Myths
Today, CEI and seven other free-market organizations sent a letter to members of Congress aimed at dispelling myths circulating about the airport passenger facility charge…
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CEI Leads Coalition Urging Surface Transportation Board to Withdraw Proposed Switching Rule
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) led a coalition of 20 other free market organizations urging the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to withdraw a harmful…
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Department of Transportation Should Rescind Crew-Size ‘Featherbedding’ Proposal
Unions in the railroad industry have a long history of “featherbedding,” the pejorative term for the practice of creating pointless make-work jobs. Most infamous was…
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User Fees, Rather than Tax Dollars, Can Promote Airport Efficiency and Lower Airfares
This morning, I testified before the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives at a hearing titled, “The Cost of Doing…
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Higher Taxes, Wasteful Spending Not Solutions to Infrastructure Problems
In recent years, there have been increasing calls to raise federal fuel excise tax rates in order to address what many have called an infrastructure…
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Conservative Criticisms of Passenger Facility Charge Again Miss Mark
Our friends at the National Taxpayers Union (NTU) recently sent a letter to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure in advance of a hearing…
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CEI Leads Coalition in Support of Nationwide Road Usage Charge Pilot Program
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute sent a letter to Congress urging members to preserve and strengthen the users-pay/users-benefit highway funding principle and to establish a…
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Would a TSA Strike Force an End to the Shutdown?
As the current partial federal government shutdown drags on and many federal employees continue to go without pay, some pundits have suggested that one way…
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Eliminate Obsolete Patented and Proprietary Products Regulation
Today, I submitted comments to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) on behalf of CEI in response to a notice of proposed rulemaking on promoting innovation in…
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Year in Review 2018: Transportation Policy
CEI had a busy year in the transportation policy trenches. We worked at the federal, state, and local levels on a variety of projects. Below…
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American Association for Justice Places Trial Lawyer Interests over Saving Lives
The bipartisan AV START Act would create the first national highly automated vehicle regulatory framework in the U.S. This legislation is necessary to speed deployment…
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Cathy Chase’s AV START Act Flip-Flop
Cathy Chase, now the president of the lobby group Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, was previously a strong supporter of the Senate’s bipartisan AV…
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Rubberstamping Regulations Is Not Consumer Protection
Earlier this week, Tribune Publishing’s syndicated travel writer Ed Perkins criticized the appointment of CEI’s Fran Smith to the newly reconstituted Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory…
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CEI Comments on Possible Federal Automated Vehicle Pilot Program
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute submitted comments to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in response to its advance notice of proposed rulemaking on…
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New Federal Railroad Administration Rule Can Help Reduce Passenger Train Costs
Today, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) published its long-awaited final rule to modernize passenger railcar crashworthiness standards. When it takes effect on January 22,…
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Dockless Bikes, E-Scooters, and Urban Transportation Policy Hypocrisy
In August 2017, I wrote about the municipal government cronyism and monopoly franchise agreements driving the controversy over unsubsidized dockless bikesharing companies. In the rapidly…
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Will New Congress Seek Reforms to Highway Taxation?
Could the 116th Congress be the perfect storm for mileage-based user fees? With a divided Congress and with the current surface transportation law expiring at…
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Can Self-Driving Taxis Reduce Urban Poverty?
In last year’s omnibus spending package, Congress allocated up to $1.5 million to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to conduct a study on the…
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David Friedman Swings and Misses at AV START Act
Axios recently launched a newsletter dedicated to automated vehicles. In the most recent issue, David Friedman attacks bipartisan legislation in Congress aimed at speeding…
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Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Airline Deregulation
Forty years ago today on October 24, 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed the Airline Deregulation Act into law. This bipartisan legislation led to the elimination…
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Environmental Protection Agency Considering Backdoor Subsidies for ‘Talking Car’ Tech
During the final days of the Obama administration, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed its “talking car” mandate. This would have required new…
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Automated Vehicles 3.0 Guidance Continues Green-Lighting Innovation
Last week, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) released the third iteration of its guidance for automated vehicles, Preparing for the Future of Transportation:…
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To Promote Highway Safety and Innovation, Senate Must Pass AV START Act
It has now been over a year since the U.S. House of Representatives passed the bipartisan SELF DRIVE Act by voice vote. Its companion bill,…
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Senate Should Pass on Joan Claybrook’s Advice and Pass AV START Act
Why are self-styled safety advocates opposing the first legislative step that could help usher in the greatest automotive safety improvements in history? This is a…
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New York City Continues War on Affordable Consumer Travel
Yesterday, the New York City Council voted to impose a one-year cap on the number of ride-hailing vehicles able to operate in the city.
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House Transportation Chairman Proposes Examining Shift to User Fees for Highway Funding
Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA), the outgoing chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, this week released a legislative discussion draft of a new infrastructure bill,…
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CEI Releases ‘Authorizing Automated Vehicle Platooning, 2018 Edition’
CEI has released my third annual report on state barriers to vehicle platooning, Authorizing Automated Vehicle Platooning: A Guide for State Legislators, 2018 Edition.
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Last Chance for the 115th: Senate Should Pass AV START Act
Back when CEI published “Free to Prosper: A Pro-Growth Agenda for the 115th Congress” at the end of 2016, we wrote that “[t]o…
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Debunking the Dilatory Objections to the AV START Act
In September 2017, the House of Representatives passed the SELF DRIVE Act by unanimous voice vote. The bill would for the first time establish…
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Clearing a Regulatory Path for Automated Trucks and Trains
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is the national safety regulator of heavy trucks and buses, or commercial motor vehicles. It was created in 2000…
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Even without Air Traffic Control Reform, House FAA Bill Improvement to Status Quo
Last week, House Transportation Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) introduced his updated Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill, eliminating the air traffic control reform title, and making…
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Cracking Down on Automated Vehicles Would Mean More Death and Destruction
Real-life road testing is the best way to continue improving the performance of automated driving systems, thanks in part to the gathering of real-time road…
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Human Achievement: The Shipping Container
One of the most underappreciated drivers of the modern global economy is the humble shipping container. Widely adopted internationally in the second half of the…
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CEI Submits Comments to Federal Vehicle Regulator on Automated Driving Systems
The process for modernizing federal motor vehicle safety standards needs to be improved, thereby allowing for more rapid deployment of vehicles equipped with new self-driving technology…
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Trump’s Recent Trade Decisions Could Spell Doom for the Economy
With President Trump’s announcement on steel and aluminum tariffs and his continued wrong-headed approach to trade policy, there are reasons to be concerned that a…
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Skepticism of Driverless Car Hype Is Warranted But Shouldn’t Sacrifice Innovation and Safety
Applying the precautionary principle to the regulation of self-driving cars could mean more highway fatalities, by delaying the introduction of new, lifesaving technologies. …
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Rep. Dave Brat’s Pro-Competitive Free to Fly Act Is a First Step in the Right Direction
The Free to Fly Act would eliminate a generations-old anti-competitive federal law governing domestic airline ownership.
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Trump’s Infrastructure Plan: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
This morning, the White House released its long-anticipated, 53-page infrastructure proposal. It is an expansion of the leaked six-page summary that I commented…
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Uber Wants to Make It Illegal to Operate Your Own Self-Driving Car in Cities
Beleaguered ridesourcing giant Uber has been criticized for a wide variety of sins, both real and imagined. But their biggest sin yet may be what…
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More Misguided Conservative Criticism of the Passenger Facility Charge
Congress should free the hand of airports to finance improvements with user fees rather than relying on federal tax revenue.
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#SOTU2018: All Eyes on Infrastructure
Despite the Trump administration’s misguided call for additional federal spending on infrastructure, there are some bright spots for free marketers in the administration's plan.
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Congress Should Repeal ‘Sore Loser’ Trade Law
Supporters of free trade ought to pressure Congress to repeal executive authority to unilaterally impose protectionist trade sanctions. …
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Where Are the President’s Surface Transportation Board Nominees?
Three seats currently sit empty on the Surface Transportation Board (STB) and the White House should move quickly to nominate cautious and judicious rail experts…
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Congress Must Help Modernize Outdated Auto Safety Regulations
Congress should encourage safety regulators to more rapidly adopt modern standards developed by private professional organizations. …
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Is There a Drone under Your Tree? Here’s the Current Status of Federal Regulation
No longer just the stuff of modern warfare, small drone aircraft are increasingly used in real estate, agriculture, infrastructure inspection, and search and rescue, to…
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Two Cheers for Virginia’s I-66 Express Lanes
Virginia’s limited foray into uncapped variable tolling represents a fairer and more efficient way to manage traffic congestion and pay for surface transportation.
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CEI Submits Comments on New Automated Driving System Federal Guidance
Today, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, joined by the R Street Institute, submitted comments to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in response to the…
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How to Update Federal Auto Safety Rules to Conform to the Latest Technical Standards
Motor vehicle safety regulations in the United States frequently fail to incorporate the latest voluntary consensus standards developed by automotive technical experts.
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Did Congress Stumble on a New Way to Modernize Auto Safety Rules?
The federal government has long recognized the virtues of adhering to consensus industry standards when regulating industrial activities, rather than attempting to invent technical standards…
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V2V Mandate Nixed: DOT Ends Second Most Costly U.S. Regulatory Proposal
the U.S. Department of Transportation will not promulgate a costly new regulation, setting the stage for withdrawal of its notice of proposed rulemaking mandating new…
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House Members Repeat False Claims about Passenger Facility Charges
The current Senate Transportation and Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill is a step forward on modernizing airport financing and governance in the U.S.
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A Good START for Automated Vehicle Technology that Should Extend to Trucking
Last week, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune (R-SD) and Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) introduced the American Vision for Safer Transportation Through Advancement of Revolutionary…
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No Reason for Denying Puerto Rico a Jones Act Waiver
The Trump administration should immediately grant a Jones Act waiver to Puerto Rico and Congress should fully repeal the maritime cabotage prohibition.
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CEI Offers Recommendations to Improve Senate’s AV START Act
The draft legislation is another welcome early step from the federal government on self-driving vehicles.
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NHTSA Releases Improved Federal Automated Driving System Guidance
The Department of Transportation is putting its money where its mouth is in preventing overregulation of automated driving systems.
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American Conservative Union Statement Wrong on Air Traffic Control Reform
Spinning off air traffic control responsibilities into a nongovernmental nonprofit will save taxpayers more than $10 billion per year.
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CEI Leads Coalition Urging Senators to Preserve Railroad Deregulation
The Senate Commerce Committee leadership should respect the indisputable gains of deregulation.
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SELF DRIVE Act to Face House Floor Vote
Congress needs to move forward on self-driving cars.
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Conservative Air Traffic Control Reform Opponents Continue Campaign of Falsehoods
Recently, I noted how corporate jet lobby National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) had attempted to trot out “Hero of the Hudson” Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger…
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Will Politicians Let Unsubsidized Bike Share Compete?
The problem with monopoly bike-share contracts is that they are designed to benefit everyone except consumers and taxpayers.
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More on ‘Sully’ and Private Jet Air Traffic Control Subsidies
Despite his status in public life, Sully does not represent the interests of American air travelers and is out of step with current airline pilots,…
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What Is the Future of Surface Transportation Finance and Governance?
The fuel tax is becoming an increasingly unstable source of dedicated user revenue.
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‘Sully’ Wrong on Air Traffic Control Reform
We urge Sully to do his homework and to critically assess the false, anti-consumer claims he is parroting on behalf of the corporate jet lobby.
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House Energy & Commerce Committee Considers Self-Driving Vehicle Legislation
This bill improves on the definition of “automated driving system” in a manner that likely ensures its constitutionality.
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Senate Appropriations Committee to Consider Airport Fee Increase
The Senate Appropriations Committee will consider a provision that would increase the airport passenger facility charge cap from $4.50 to $8.
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Does the Car of the Future Require a “Talking Car” Mandate?
The Competitive Enterprise Institute is hosting an event later today where a proposal to require all new cars in the United States come outfitted…
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Reform State Vehicle Codes to Enable Automated Vehicle Platooning
In the future, automated platooning will allow roadway capacity enhancements without costly physical roadway expansions.
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Congress Should Embrace Airport Financing Reforms
Today, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a markup on its Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill. The Senate Commerce Committee is considering…
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Reforming Air Traffic Control with the 21st Century AIRR Act
To aid in the public understanding of this important but complex reform proposal, CEI has released two policy briefs on the 21st Century AIRR Act.
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Vox.com Snookered by Debunked 2016 CBO Score of Air Traffic Control Reform
The Trump administration released its “legislative principles” for reforming U.S. air traffic control, which closely mirror a reform proposal introduced in 2016 by House Transportation…
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Canada’s Air Traffic Provider Announces Lowered Fees; U.S. Should Embrace Same Model
Since the Canadian government decided 20 years ago to spin off air traffic control from the nation’s transportation department, Nav Canada has seen its inflation-adjusted…
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Rep. Meadows Introduces Transportation Performance-based Regulatory Reform Bill
Today, Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) introduced the Revamping American Infrastructure Act of 2017 (H.R. 2714), which aims to “facilitate the use of outcome-based performance…
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Drone Hobbyist Defeats FAA’s Illegal Model Aircraft Registration Rule
Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled in favor of Maryland attorney John Taylor, a drone hobbyist who challenged the…
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CEI Leads Coalition Supporting DeFazio-Massie PFC Uncap Bill
Today, a coalition of free market groups sent a joint letter to House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leadership urging them to support the “Investing…
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California’s Proposed Automated Vehicle Regulations under Fire
Unless they cease attempting to involve their state in matters of federal responsibility, California’s politicians and bureaucrats will have blood on their hands.
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CEI Submits Comments on Proposed Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications Mandate
Last week, CEI and a coalition of free-market organizations sent a letter to Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao asking her to temporarily suspend the current…