Featured Posts
Capitol Matters
East Palestine Report: Congress Should Rethink Its Reaction
In almost a decade working for the British Department for Transport, no officials impressed me as much as the accident investigators. They were dedicated experts who…
Blog
UAW revival gets flat tire in Alabama
The United Auto Workers (UAW) on Friday lost a high-profile bid to organize 5,000 Mercedes-Benz workers in a plant near Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The loss…
Blog
UAW loses 13,000 members
The United Auto Workers (UAW) lost 13,000 members in the last year, according to filings the union made to the Labor Department. The UAW said…
Search Posts
FleetOwner
Report: State Laws Need Changing to Support Platooning, AVs
FleetOwner discusses automated vehicle platooning with Marc Scribner, author of Authorizing Automated Vehicle Platooning: A Guide for State Legislators, 2017 Edition. Among…
Blog
Reform State Vehicle Codes to Enable Automated Vehicle Platooning
In the future, automated platooning will allow roadway capacity enhancements without costly physical roadway expansions.
Blog
2017 Competitive Enterprise Dinner Keynote: Elaine Chao
Remarks delivered by U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao at CEI’s “Through the Looking Glass” Annual Dinner & Reception.
Blog
Will the Swamp Let Trump Reform Fuel Economy?
The administration should explore the legal implications of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, which prohibits states, like California, from adopting or enforcing laws or…
Los Angeles Times
California’s Clean Air Act Waiver Should Be Yanked, Trump’s Former Environmental Advisor Says
Los Angeles Times covers California’s Clean Air Act waiver and Myron Ebell’s comments at a training program hosted by the National Press Foundation.
Blog
Should Whole Foods Employees Fear Amazon?
Yes, individuals will lose their jobs to automation, but increases in productivity will boost demand that will, ultimately, require more human workers.
Blog
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…
RealClear Future
Straight Talk on the “Talking Car” Mandate
Will another driver’s car “talking” with yours someday save your life? The answer, from regulators and many automakers, is a resounding “Yes.” Such a promising…
Blog
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.
Automotive News
Federal V2V Mandate Meets Growing Resistance
Automotive News discusses the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s proposed vehicle-to-vehicle communication technology mandate with Marc Scribner. The failure to consider alternative technologies…
Blog
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…
Blog
California’s Proposed Autonomous Vehicle Rules Could Be Improved
The California Department of Motor Vehicles published its proposed testing and deployment rules for automated vehicles.
Blog
Improve Infrastructure Projects with Financing and Regulatory Reform
Financing and regulatory reform can help public and private investors get the most bang for their buck out of major new infrastructure projects.
Blog
EPA Urged to Reconsider Last-Minute Obama Mileage Rules
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers petitioned Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt this week to re-evaluate greenhouse gas emission standards for new cars that were…
Reason.com
Bad News: The Government Wants to ‘Help’ Driverless Car Companies
Reason.com discusses with Marc Scribner the U.S. Department of Transportation’s proposed rules on vehicle-to-vehicle communication. Plus, as Competitive Enterprise Institute researcher Marc Scribner…
Blog
Five Regulatory Heartbreaks on Valentine’s Day
Tomorrow we celebrate our significant other by showering them with affection and chocolate—but is government regulation getting in the way of your date night?…
Blog
Trump Not Bound by Obama Volkswagen Settlement with EPA
The judicial settlement which was reached between Volkswagen and the U.S. Department of Justice last October infringes on President Trump’s Article II authority.
Blog
White House Should Revisit Volkswagen Settlement with EPA
A coalition of free-market groups ask President Trump to investigate the VW emissions settlement with the EPA.
Blog
Obama Highway Administration Released Troubling Vehicle Communications Guidance
Last Thursday, the outgoing Obama Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) released its long-awaited guidance document on the deployment of vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications.
Blog
Wasteful Spending, Minimum Wage Hike Fuel California Budget Deficit
California’s projected budget deficit is rising, but that could have been avoided by curtailing wasteful spending.
Real Clear Policy
Don’t Re-Regulate the Railroads
Real Clear Policy discusses policy on the railroad industry with Marc Scribner. Marc Scribner of the Competitive Enterprise Institute neatly summarized the implications…
Blog
RealClear Radio Hour: City Extortion and Cities’ Heroine
In this episode of RealClear Radio Hour, Brian Hodges discusses West Hollywood’s extortion of local developers and Robert Kanigel shares stories of Great American Cities…
Wall Street Journal
Uber’s Clash With Regulators Moves to Self-Driving Cars
The Wall Street Journal discusses Uber’s use of self-driving cars in San Fransisco with Marc Scribner. “This is right out of the playbook…
Blog
Can Congress Veto EPA’s Fuel Economy Rush Job?
The Environmental Protection Agency’s recent proposal to keep in place the agency’s model year greenhouse gas emission standards for new motor vehicles is the epitome…
Blog
How Ridesharing Platforms Help the Economy
We have been saying for a while that ridesharing platforms like Lyft are different from traditional transportation firms, not just in the technology they use,…
Ars Technica
Vehicle-to-vehicle communication rule finally proposed by the government
Ars Technica discusses the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's proposed rule on vehicle-to-vehicle communication with Marc Scribner. But not everyone is as enamored.
New York Times
Cars Talking to One Another? They Could Under Proposed Safety Rules
The New York Times discusses the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's proposed rule on vehicle-to-vehicle communication technology with Marc Scribner. The conservative Competitive…
Washington Post
Blind man sets out alone in Google’s driverless car
The Washington Post discusses the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's proposed rule on connected vehicle technology with Marc Scribner. The Competitive Enterprise Institute,…
The Hill
Feds unveil rule requiring cars to ‘talk’ to each other
The Hill discusses the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's proposed rule on connected vehicle technology with Marc Scribner. “It is extremely disappointing to…
Blog
EPA Rushes to Lock in Obama Administration Fuel Economy Standards
The Environmental Protection Agency last Wednesday released its proposed Mid-Term Evaluation (MET) of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards for model year (MY) 2022-2025 passenger vehicles.
Blog
Drain the Swamp: Sunset the Renewable Fuel Standard
“Draining the swamp” includes abolishing the RFS.
FastCompany Co.Design
The Privatized City Where Everything Is Tolled
Marc Scribner is quoted by Fast Company Co.Design on potential problems with a new infrastructure investment plan: "The most extreme thing Congress could…
Blog
Coalition Submits Comments on Federal Automated Vehicles Policy
Today, CEI was joined by R Street Institute and TechFreedom in comments submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on the recently released…
The Hill
Industry weighs in on driverless car guidelines
The Hill reports on a letter CEI joined which flagged problems with regulators' guidance for automated vehicles. Meanwhile, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI),…
The Hill
How driverless cars can reduce pollution
The Hill highlights Marc Scribner's report on state laws that would restrict platooning technology for automated vehicles. Autonomous vehicles also have the potential to…
Blog
Self-Driving Car Developers Blast Dangerous Draft California Regulations
Today, the California Department of Motor Vehicles held a public workshop on its latest draft deployment regulations for autonomous vehicles.
The Hill
California weighs self-driving car rules
The Hill discusses California's draft driverless car regulations with Marc Scribner. Marc Scribner, a research fellow for the Competitive Enterprise Institute, said the…
Blog
A Free Market Response to the Federal Automated Vehicles Policy
The quickest way to slam the brakes on innovation is for bumbling bureaucrats to outlaw it.
Blog
Transport Groups Oppose Obama Greenhouse Gas Power Grab
Twenty-three organizations representing highway users, transportation, vehicle, and energy trade associations filed joint comments last weekend opposing any proposal by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)…
Blog
Uber Announces Self-Driving Passenger Pilot, Raises New Regulatory Questions
It was just announced that Uber will soon begin piloting its automated vehicle prototype in Pittsburgh—with passengers. This is not the first automated vehicle…
Blog
Volkswagen Deal on Zero Emission Vehicles an End Run around Congress
In his 2011 State of the Union Address, President Obama promised to put 1 million electric vehicles on the road. To this end, the President…
Blog
Elon Musk Angry at Having to Compete for Taxpayer Handouts
“Rent seeking” occurs when companies secure government benefits for actions that do not otherwise create wealth.
Blog
Authorizing Automated Vehicle Platooning: A Proactive Approach for the States
I recently attended the annual Automated Vehicle Symposium in San Francisco. More than 1,000 attendees from around the world from industry, academia, government, and NGOs…
Blog
Worst Procedural Abuses of the Obama Era: Secret Rules
Since Obama took office, the EPA’s grossest procedural violation was so outrageous that the agency voluntarily reversed course after it came to light. In the…
Blog
New York Times Editorial Board Crashes into Automated Vehicles
In light of Tesla’s foolish decision to rush distraction-causing, low-level automation technology to car consumers, which has resulted in at least one fatality and several…
Blog
Coming Soon: International Mayors for Inconvenient Travel
While we wait to see whether Gov. Andrew Cuomo will sign legislation targeting home-share listings in New York, the governmental response to the sharing economy’s…
Blog
Building on the Optimism of “Uber-Positive” Attitudes
There’s a new resource for understanding the state of play between politics and developments in the sharing economy, the pleasantly slim volume by the Manhattan…
Washington Examiner
What’s the government’s role in regulating Uber and Lyft?
The Washington Examiner discusses the government's role in regulating ridesharing services with Marc Scribner. "Municipal taxi regulators are often captured by the entities…
Tribune News Service
Banning Cars from Urban Centers: Costly, Few Benefits Provided
“Take back our streets!” is a common refrain among urban activists. No, they’re not talking about reducing violent crime, as many of them reside in…
One News Now
Advice to gov’t on autonomous cars: Don’t mess it up
One News Now discusses the White House's announcement of new initiatives on automated vehicles, with Marc Scribner. Marc Scribner, fellow in transportation policy…
Blog
CEI Welcomes Obama Administration’s Automated Vehicle Push, With Caveats
The Obama administration’s plan to pump $4 billion over 10 years to “accelerate” the development and deployment of automated vehicles. How they exactly plan to…
Blog
2016 Regulatory Schedule for the U.S. Department of Transportation
Last year, the Federal Aviation Administration’s two drone rulemakings got a lot of attention: their strange attempt to implement Congress’s airspace integration mandate and their unlawful…
Blog
Automated Vehicles Update: California DMV Releases Draft Rules and Some Notes about that Crash Study
CALIFORNIA DMV AV OPPS RULES PROPOSED: On December 16, the California Department of Motor Vehicles released its draft licensing and operations rules for consumer automated vehicles,…
Blog
FAST Act Debrief: A Few Policy Notes on the Latest Highway Bill
Last Friday, December 4, President Obama signed into law the FAST Act, which reauthorizes federal surface transportation programs through Fiscal Year 2020 to the tune…
The Daily Signal
Another Dud Highway Bill from the House
The Daily Signal discusses the new Highway Bill and looks to Marc Scribner for information on the bills expansion of the federal government's role in…
Blog
Initial Thoughts on the Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act
This morning, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee released its Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act. Unlike the Senate bill, which relies on imaginary pay-fors…
Blog
No, Politicians Shouldn’t Outlaw Driving to Usher in Self-Driving Cars
Over at Fusion, Kevin Roose has what is perhaps the worst article on automated vehicles (AVs) I’ve ever seen. In it, he calls for a near-term…
Blog
USDOT Wants it Both Ways with Off-Peak Freight Movements
Over at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Fastlane blog, Greg Nadeau, administrator of the Federal Highway Administration, has a post touting USDOT’s support for off-peak freight…
Blog
New York Times Editorial Board Clueless on Smart Car Safety and Security
On Sunday, August 9, The New York Times ran an editorial, “Protecting Cars from Hackers,” discussing the recent publicized hacking incidents of Fiat Chrysler and Tesla vehicles, with…
Blog
Reimagining Surface Transportation Reauthorization: Pro-Market Recommendations for Policy Makers
Today, CEI published my white paper, “Reimagining Surface Transportation Reauthorization: Pro-Market Recommendations for Policy Makers.” In it, I lay out the case for making…
Duluth News Trubine
Pro/Con: Is government micromanaging US auto industry?
Yes: Industry, motorists victims of over-regulation Over-regulation is slowing growth, stifling innovation and costing jobs across the economy. The auto industry is the prime example.
Bradenton Herald
Auto industry and motorists prime victims of government`s overregulation
Over-regulation is slowing growth, stifling innovation and costing jobs across the economy. The auto industry is the prime example. Auto workers and investors are obviously…
GazetteXtra
Pro: Auto industry and motorists prime victims of government’s over-regulation
Auto workers and investors are obviously harmed by heavy-handed government regulation, but the biggest losers are drivers. In buying new vehicles, they already face higher…
Canada Free Press
Auto industry and motorists prime victim of Feds over-regulation
Auto workers and investors are obviously harmed by heavy-handed government regulation, but the biggest losers are drivers. In buying new vehicles, they already face higher…
The Sacramento Bee
Auto industry and motorists prime victims of government’s over-regulation
Over-regulation is slowing growth, stifling innovation and costing jobs across the economy. The auto industry is the prime example. Auto workers and investors are obviously…
Comment
CEI Comments to the Uniform Law Commission’s Study Committee on State Regulation of Driverless Cars
Full Document Available in PDF On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to the…
Blog
Long Mass Transit Commutes Are Horrible for Your Health
Joseph Stromberg at Vox.com has an article up arguing that “commuting alone by car” is “associated with obesity, high blood pressure, sleeplessness, and general unhappiness” relative…
Blog
Not So Fast: Fatally Flawed Research Asserts Alcohol Taxes Save Lives
Last month, researchers at the University of Florida published a study in the American Journal of Public Health that concluded, “Increases in alcohol excise taxes, such…
Blog
Why Is the Federal Government Threatening Times Square’s Billboards?
Colleagues tipped me off to an absurd news story about how the federal government is threatening to punish New York City for its famously gaudy Times…
Blog
Google Now Opposes State Automated Vehicle Legislation?
Back in 2012, I warned that California’s bill (now law) that would explicitly recognize the legality of automated vehicles and order state regulators to develop a…
Blog
Could Alcohol Taxes Reduce Fatal Car Crashes?
A new study from the University of Florida asserts that because Illinois instituted an alcohol tax increase in 2009 and the rate of alcohol-related traffic…
Blog
Administration’s GROW AMERICA Act 2.0 Mixes Bad with Good
Today, Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx unveiled the administration’s latest surface transportation reauthorization proposal. Like the previous White House bill, the latest iteration of the…
Blog
How Not to Fix, and Fix, Federal Surface Transportation Policy
A lot of misinformation and scaremongering swells around transportation infrastructure policy in Washington. We are told our highway network is on the verge of collapse…
Blog
Ridesharing and Regulation
Earlier this week, I appeared on a Cato Institute panel organized by Cato’s Matthew Feeney, author of a new report on for-hire vehicle safety issues. Video…
Roll Call
What Rules To Govern Uber-Type Services?
Roll Call reports on Marc Scribner's presentation at a Cato Institute policy forum on ridesharing regulations: But Marc Scribner of Competitive Enterprise…
Blog
Transportation Roundup: Obama Budget, DOT 2045, and Sad Transcontinental Railroad Nostalgia
The President’s FY 2016 Budget On Monday, the White House released its DOA FY 2016 budget. Like President Obama’s previous budgets, this one has no…
Blog
Invest in Transportation Act of 2015 Violates Fiscally Conservative Transportation Principles
It was just announced that Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) would introduce the Invest in Transportation Act of 2015. The bill aims to offer…
Blog
Gas Tax Mission Creep: From User-Pays to Carbon Tax?
The Niskanen Center is a new libertarian think tank that we at CEI look forward to working with on a number of issues. However, one where…
Blog
WSJ Editorial Board: Abolish the Federal Gas Tax
In recent days, a growing number of congressional Republicans have signaled a willingness to increase the federal excise tax rates on gasoline and diesel. As I…
Blog
Automated Vehicles Update: Big Feature at CES, California Rules Delayed, Georgia Cautious on Regulation
It’s been a few months since I last checked in on automated vehicles (AVs), commonly called driverless cars or autonomous vehicles. Below are some developments of…
Blog
Poll: Two-Thirds of Americans Oppose Federal Gas Tax Increase
A new poll from Benson Strategy Group and SKDKnickerbocker found that 67 percent of Americans oppose increasing the federal gasoline tax by 15 cents, or an…
Blog
Political vs. Market Regulation: Uber Edition
Earlier this week The Washington Post’s Catherine Rampell suggested that new entrants in the transportation market, like Uber, should face greater government regulation—despite having fueled much of…
Blog
Rep. Tom Petri Invokes Bad Reagan Policy to Justify Increasing the Gas Tax
Yesterday, retiring Rep. Tom Petri (R-Wisc.) joined wacky Rep. Earl "United Streetcar" Blumenauer (D-Ore.) to endorse increasing the federal gasoline tax by 80 percent.
Roll Call
Friday Q & A: Marc Scribner of the Competitive Enterprise Institute
Part 1, Part 2 Analyst Marc Scribner at the Competitive Enterprise Institute examines transportation policy from a staunchly pro-market standpoint. Here are excerpts…
Blog
New Jersey’s Driverless Car Bill: One Step Forward, Three Steps Back
Yesterday, the New Jersey Senate Transportation Committee in a unanimous vote reported S734, a bill that would recognize the legality of autonomous vehicle testing…
Comment
Comments to NHTSA Regarding Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications
Full Document Available in PDF On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to the…
Blog
Misguided Regulations Threaten Automated Vehicle Innovation
Earlier this week, I appeared on a Cato Institute panel titled, "The End of Transit and the Beginning of the New Mobility: Policy Implications…
Roll Call
With Autonomous Cars, A World Without Red Lights?
Marc Scribner of the Competitive Enterprise Institute said misguided government regulation may delay development of autonomous vehicles. Regulators may be well-intentioned, but they’re slow, he…
Blog
Is Driving to Work in Decline?
Over at The Washington Post's Wonkblog, urban affairs reporter Emily Badger has a post up on the recently released U.S. Census Bureau American Community…
Products
Response questioned
David Heckman’s response (“A bad idea,” Your Views, Sept. 6) to my recent op-ed (“Tolls less regressive than gas taxes,” Views, Aug. 31) conflated mine…
Watchdog.org
Officials quiet as police cite Uber-driving, retired Navy dad
Marc Scribner is a transportation expert at the Washington, D.C-based Competitive Enterprise Institute. He says the problem lies with Virginia’s laws — laws that didn’t…
Blog
Regulator: True Ridesharing Illegal in California
In the past, I’ve noted that carve-outs for ridesharing providers leaves more innovative and disruptive business models—particularly future automated services—illegal. While self-driving on-demand transportation…
The Modesto Bee
Tolls Less Regressive than Gas Taxes; Force Truckers to Finally Pay Fair Share
The United States faces a transportation infrastructure dilemma. According to recent estimates from the Reason Foundation, reconstruction and needed capacity enhancements to the Interstate Highway…
Blog
Uber and Regulation: Pro-Business Is Not Pro-Market
“Republicans love Uber. Young urban voters love Uber. And Republicans hope that means young voters can learn to love the GOP.” That was the opening…
Blog
Public Still Favors Transportation User Fees over Tax Increases
Voters in Missouri yesterday rejected a proposed constitutional amendment that would have imposed a 0.75 percent sales tax to fund transportation, with nearly 60 percent opposing a…
Blog
New Report Highlights Driverless Car Urban Impact; Takes Techno-Dystopian Stance
Earlier this month, Professor David Begg of Transport Times published a new report on automated transport technology focusing on the potential impacts on London. This is one of…
Blog
Uber, Regulation, and Free Markets
Libertarians are justifiably excited about the prospects of ridesharing companies such as Uber and equally justified in their disgust of regulators intent on preventing the…
The Skeptical Libertarian
Reasons Libertarians Should Be Skeptical of Uber Politics
Libertarians, we may have an Uber problem. Don’t get me wrong, friends of freedom. I love Uber. I use Uber at least once a week.
Letters
An Open Letter to the United States Congress: Protect Taxpayers and Empower the States by Reforming Transportation Spending
Full Coalition Letter Available Here Congress is set to consider major transportation spending legislation this year. The Competitive Enterprise Institute, Americans for Prosperity and…
Watchdog.org
Taxicab industry has history of lobbying, donations
The Virginia DMV’s order for Uber and Lyft to cease all operations in the commonwealth is the latest showing of the taxicab industry’s influence in…