Air travel and rail transport were early examples of deregulation bringing huge benefits to consumers and industries. Yet automobility, air travel, and freight rail, are increasingly threatened with further regulation that will reduce their ability to transport goods and people. CEI opposes these attacks by arguing for greater freedom in mobility and opposing perverse transportation industry regulations.
Transportation Issue Areas
Featured Posts
National Review
J. D. Vance’s One-Track Mind for Railroad Regulation
Ohio senator and GOP vice-presidential nominee J. D. Vance has something of a soft spot for unions, as evidenced by his co-sponsorship of the…
Blog
Free the Economy podcast: Paying for mass transit with Marc Scribner
In this week’s episode we cover California’s minimum wage for fast-food workers, overturning the FCC’s universal service fee, and pushing back on…
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…
Search Posts
Blog
Automakers to Trump: Keep Us Captive to California Bureaucrats
Seventeen automakers, including Ford, General Motors, and Toyota Motor North America sent a letter on 6th June to President Donald J. Trump urging him not to challenge California’s…
News Release
Report: Congress Needs a 21st Century Approach to Infrastructure Needs
Raising the federal fuel tax won’t adequately and fairly pay for future roadway infrastructure needs, argues a new Competitive Enterprise Institute report released today.
Study
Transforming Surface Transportation Reauthorization
The United States Interstate Highway System serves as the backbone of American commerce and personal travel. Funded as a pay-as-you-go basis largely through federal excise…
Blog
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…
Blog
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…
Blog
Boeing Pushes 100 Percent Tariffs on Airbus
Boeing, fresh off a victory in restoring the Export-Import Bank’s full lending authority, is floating the idea of a 100 percent tariff on Airbus aircraft…
Blog
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…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition to Congress: No Electric Vehicle Tax Credit Expansion
We, the undersigned organizations, write to object to any effort to expand the current electric vehicle tax credit. While the tax credit is misguided, at…
Blog
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…
Letters
CEI Leads Coalition Letter to Congress Dispelling PFC Myths
Dear Members of Congress, We write to you today to dispel myths surrounding the airport passenger facility charge (PFC).
Blog
Congressional Democratic Leaders Meet with President on Infrastructure Bill
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and other congressional Democrats met with President Trump on April 30 to discuss an infrastructure package.
Blog
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…
Letters
CEI Leads Coalition Letter to STB on Competitive Switching Rule
Dear Chairman Begeman, Vice Chairman Fuchs, and Member Oberman, We, the undersigned, wish to congratulate and welcome you to your appointments. The Surface Transportation Board…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Supporting DOT on California High-Speed Rail Funding
We, the undersigned organizations, representing millions of taxpayers nationwide, appreciate your leadership and support your efforts to de-obligate $929 million in federal grants not yet…
Eno Transportation Weekly
Airport Investments Discussed in House Transportation and Infrastructure Hearing
Eno Transportation Weekly cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner’s testimony on infastructure funding. Compromise arose both in the sense of considering a variety of revenue…
AASHTO Journal
House Ways and Means Committee Holds Infrastructure Funding Hearing
AASHTO Journal cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner’s testimony at the House Ways and Means Committee hearing on infrastructure funding. In the future, Marc Scribner, a…
MarketWatch
Key Republican Raises Alarm About Hiking Corporate Taxes to Pay for Infrastructure Overhaul
MarketWatch cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on infrastructure spending. “There are very real infrastructure needs in the U.S., but they are not uniform…
Roll Call
5 Ways Congress May Try to Fix the Highway Trust Fund
Roll Call cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on mass transit. Marc Scribner of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, who will testify at Wednesday’s Ways…
Bloomberg BNA
Talking Cars Speaking Different Tongues May Make FCC Pick Winner
Bloomberg BNA cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on the NCTA’s request to allow unlicensed use of 5.9 GHz airwaves for Wi-Fi calls. Potential…
Federal News Network
Audio: Automatic Vehicles: Safer Than Humans?
Senior Fellow Marc Scribner joins the Federal News Network to discuss how automated vehicles will reduce the number of injuries and property damage caused by accidents…
Spokesman
Spokane Airport Executive Lobbies Congress for ‘User Fee’ Increase to $8.50 to Finance Improvements
Spokesman cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner’s participation in a hearing before the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Krauter was joined at…
Comment
CEI Comments to the Surface Transportation Board in Support of AAR Petition
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments to the Surface Transportation Board (“STB”) in support of Association of American…
Blog
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…
Blog
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…
Comment
Marc Scribner Testimony Before the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure U.S. House of Representatives
Chairman DeFazio, Ranking Member Graves, and Members of the Committee, thank you for giving me the opportunity to testify before you today. My name is…
C-SPAN
VIDEO: Marc Scribner Testifies Before House Ways and Means Committee
Senior Fellow Marc Scribner testifies before House Ways and Means Committee to discuss the nation's infrastructure needs.
Blog
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…
Comment
Marc Scribner Testimony Before the Committee on Ways and Means U.S. House of Representatives
Chairman Neal, Ranking Member Brady, and Members of the Committee, thank you for giving me the opportunity to testify before you today. My name is…
Products
Coalition for Future Mobility Letter on Federal AV legislation
Speaker Pelosi, Minority Leader McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader McConnell, and Minority Leader Schumer: Roughly two years ago, the Coalition for Future Mobility – a group…
Comment
Letter for the Record to the Senate Finance Committee on Senate Bill 252
Dear Chair Kelley and distinguished members of the Senate Finance Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to supplement the record of your hearing on Senate…
Trucks.com
Real-World Value of Truck Platooning Questioned as Support Wanes
Trucks.com cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on automated platooning. The Competitive Enterprise Institute shows 17 states have approved platooning in some form, according…
The Washington Examiner
Pressure to Get Self-Driving Cars on the Road
The Washington Examiner cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on the AV START Act. Marc Scribner, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, was…
Trucks.com
Truck-Only State Tolls Roil Industry That Favors Fuel-Tax Hike
Trucks.com cites CEI Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on alternatives to fuel tax increases: A mileage-based user fee and unlimited private activity bonds for…
Blog
California’s Gov. Newsom Slams Brakes on California Bullet Train
California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) on February 12th unexpectedly slammed the brakes on the state’s high-speed rail project. The project “as currently planned, would cost too…
Blog
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…
GCN Tech
What’s Next for V2X Spectrum?
As the partial government shutdown began in late December, the Department of Transportation published a request for comments on how DOT should approach vehicle-to-everything communications. V2X refers…
Comment
CEI Comments to OST on Vehicle-to-Everything Communications
View Full Document as PDF Introduction On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to…
Freight Waves
User Fee Plan Enters 2019 Highway Funding Debate
Freight Waves cited CEI’s coalition letter led by Senior Fellow Marc Scribner: The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), a Washington, D.C.-based libertarian think…
Blog
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…
Letters
CEI Leads Coalition Letter to Congress Regarding Highway Trust Fund: Users-Pay
As Congress begins considering the future of the Highway Trust Fund, its top priority should be restoring the longstanding users-pay/users-benefit principle. Further increasing the reliance…
Blog
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…
Blog
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…
Comment
CEI Comments on FHWA on Patented and Proprietary Products
View Full Document as PDF Introduction On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to…
Products
Free to Prosper: Transportation
View the full chapter on transportation here Mobility is one of our most important needs, one we often take for granted until it is…
Blog
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…
Comment
CEI Comments to NHTSA on Adaptive Driving Beam NPRM
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (“NHTSA”) Notice of Proposed…
Blog
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…
Investor's Business Daily
Trump Is Right — Subsidies for Electric Cars, Renewable Energy Must End
Investor’s Business Daily cited CEI’s coalition letter opposing extension of electric vehicle tax credits. In a study for the Manhattan Institute’s Economics 21…
Politico
Morning Transportation
Politico cited CEI Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on Uber’s AV program. The logic behind the pipeline: Snatching up Beuse was widely hailed as a good…
Travel Weekly
Airline Consumer Advocates Unhappy With DOT Appointment
Travel 60 Weekly cited CEI President and CEO Kent Lassman and CEI Adjunct Fellow Frances Smith on U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao’s appointment of Smith as…
Washington Examiner
Electric-Car Tax Credits Are Popular — And Congress Can’t Decide Whether To Expand Or Abolish Them
Washington Examiner cited CEI’s Center for Energy and Environment Director Myron Ebell on electric-car tax credit. “The people who buy these vehicles are…
Comment
CEI Comments on Automated Vehicles 3.0 Guidance
View Full Document as PDF Introduction On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to…
Politico
Leadership Change-Ups At FAA
Politico cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on CEI’s adjunct fellow Frances Smith appointment to DOT. CONSUMER RETORT: The Competitive Enterprise Institute shot back…
Blog
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…
Blog
Draft Legislation Proposes Transition from Renewable Fuel Standard to High-Octane Fuel
In a sweeping effort to change the way Washington regulates both fuels and vehicles, Reps. John Shimkus (R-IL) and Bill Flores (R-TX) of the House…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Opposing Extension of Electric Vehicle Tax Credits
We, the undersigned organizations, write to strongly object once again to any effort to expand the current electric vehicle tax credit in any way. The…
Blog
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…
Fox Business
Lessons from the GM layoffs: End the tariffs and the subsidies
General Motors announced on Monday it will be laying off 14,700 workers, closing five factories, and discontinuing several car models. This has caused some soul-searching in the…
News Release
Competitive Enterprise Institute Scholar to Champion Consumer Interests on Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee
The Competitive Enterprise Institute is pleased to announce that adjunct scholar Fran Smith has been appointed by the secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation…
Comment
CEI Comments on NHTSA AV Pilot Program
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (“NHTSA”) Advance Notice…
Blog
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…
Occupational Health & Safety
DOT Forms In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force
Occupational Health & Safety cited CEI’s Adjunct Fellow Frances Smith’s new position as ACPAC consumer representative. The first meeting of DOT’s Aviation Consumer Protection…
Blog
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,…
AllOnGeorgia
US DOT Creates National “In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force”
AllOnGeorgia cited CEI’s Adjunct Fellow Frances Smith’s upcoming ACPAC position as consumer representative. U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Elaine L. Chao has announced…
U.S. Department of Transportation
U.S. Department of Transportation Announces Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee And National In-Flight Sexual Misconduct Task Force
DOT cited CEI’s Adjunct Fellow Frances Smith’s upcoming ACPAC position as consumer representative. WASHINGTON – U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Elaine L.
Washington Examiner
Self-Driving Car Bill’s Backers Seek Senate Vote Before It’s Too Late
Washington Examiner cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on self-driving vehicle regulatory framework. Lawmakers and American car manufacturers are mounting a last-ditch effort…
Blog
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…
Blog
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…
Autobody News
Trump’s EPA Rattles Self-Driving Car Industry By Picking ‘Winners And Losers,’ Critics Claim
Autobody News cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on EPA self-driving car Other manufacturers such as Tesla and Mercedes-Benz raised concerns over the…
The Patriot Post
Airline Deregulation At 40: Flying The Friendly Skies
The Patriot Post cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on airline deregulation. Despite those fears about safety and loss of service to some…
ABC News
The Trump Economy: Why New-Car Prices Are Approaching Record Highs
ABC News cited CEI’s Fellow Ryan Young on average price increase of vehicles. $250: The average price increase of a new car due to…
Comment
CEI Comments in Response to OST Regarding Impact of Automated Vehicle Technologies on Workforce
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to the Office of the Secretary of Transportation’s (“OST”) Request…
Blog
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…
Products
CEI Comments on Incentives for Connected or Autonomous Vehicles
On behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute (“CEI”), I respectfully submit these comments in response to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (“NHTSA”) and Environmental…
Blog
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…
Investor's Business Daily
Happy 40th Birthday, Airline Deregulation — Despite Complaints, You’re A Huge Success
Investor’s Business Daily cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner airline deregulation. Americans often express mixed feelings about today’s airlines, with their missed schedules,…
Blog
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…
Washington Examiner
Safety Advocates Try To Hit The Brakes On Driverless Cars
Washington Examiner cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on Congressional action for driverless vehicles. “I understand there are important things that need to…
Inside Sources
Does Air Pollution Kill? New Report Challenges Longstanding Conviction
Inside Sources cited CEI’s Adjunct Scholar Steve Milloy’s “Will the Trump Fuel Economy Reform Proposal Create Deadly Air Pollution?” study. A decade ago,…
Washington Examiner
Trump’s EPA Rattles Self-Driving Car Industry By Picking ‘Winners And Losers,’ Critics Claim
Washington Examiner cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on technology neutrality pledge of USDOT Other manufacturers such Tesla and Mercedes-Benz raised concerns over…
Blog
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…
Blog
How to Articulate a Free-Market Vision for the Future
The Competitive Enterprise Institute views most market failure rationales for government intervention as wrong, overstated, or unproven (or all of the above). The Competitive Enterprise Institute…
News Release
Trump Trade Tariffs Mean Layoffs and Lower Auto Sales for Ford
Ford Motor Company just announced layoffs in the midst of a reported $1 billion in tariff-related losses. Auto sales are down due to trade tariffs…
The Washington Times
Trump To Raise Limit On Ethanol In Gasoline
The Washington Times cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marlo Lewis on E15 fuel limit raise. The Competitive Enterprise Institute, which frequently supports Mr. Trump’s initiatives,…
Blog
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:…
News Release
Transportation Dept. Helps Automated Vehicle Future with New, Modernized “AV 3.0” Plan
Today, the U.S. Department of Transportation put out its long-anticipated plan to pave the way for automated vehicles. The DOT guidance document is called Preparing…
The Lane Report
Perspective | New Cars, Cleaner Air
The Lane Report cited CEI on CAFE standards. The Department of Transportation finds that the best way to achieve cleaner air is when…
Letters
CEI Joins Coalition Letter Opposing Lifting the Cap on Electric Vehicle Subsidies
We the undersigned organizations write to strongly object to any effort to expand the current electric vehicle tax credit in any way. The justification for…
Reason
New FAA Reauthorization Bill Tackles Seat Size, Supersonic Jets
Reason cited CEI’s Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on Congress aviation reform. “From our perspective, this is the most forward-leaning language from Congress on…
News Release
Congress Must End Limbo for Federal Aviation Administration Funding, Though Modernization Still Urgently Needed
Congress is running out of time to pass legislation authorizing spending for the Federal Aviation Administration, with a September 30 deadline looming. CEI transportation policy…
The Daily Caller
Free Market Group: Stop Giving Handouts To Rich Tesla Drivers
The Daily Caller cited CEI’s Tesla coalition letter to Congress. “We, the undersigned organizations, write to strongly object to any effort to expand…
Blog
VIDEO: Self-Driving Cars Will Make Traveling Safer and More Efficient
The Competitive Enterprise Institute is releasing a new video today on automated vehicles (a/k/a self-driving cars) and how they could make our roads dramatically safer. They…
Blog
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,…
Boston Herald
Concorde could fly again as Congress targets supersonic ban
Boston Herald cited CEI on an upcoming Senate supersonic aviation provisions bill. “Fortunately, R&D has continued despite the ban, and recent technological breakthroughs in manufacturing and…
Inside Sources
Ban on Texting While Driving? No
Should there be a nationwide ban on texting while driving? To many, the obvious answer is a resounding yes. After all, texting while driving, along…
Blog
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…
Trucks.com
Most States Ban Truck Platooning, but Report Shows Momentum Shift
Trucks.com cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on automated vehicle platooning. In a report released Wednesday, the privately funded Competitive Enterprise…
Politico
Politico Morning Transportation: Scribner Platooning Report
Politico cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on automated vehicle platooning. The Competitive Enterprise Institute is out with a new report today…
Illinois News Network
Illinois Could be Next State to Allow Freight Trucks to Utilize Emerging Technology
Illinois News Network cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on automated vehicle platooning. “Something like adaptive cruise control, a common driver assistance system,” Competitive Enterprise…
Fleet Owner
Platooning Still Held Back by Outdated State Laws, Report Says
Fleet Owner cited Senior Fellow Marc Scribner on Authorizing Automated Vehicle Platooning: A Guide for State Legislators. A …