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
Citation
Transportation Security Agency workers in Illinois, elsewhere lose union
Competitive Enterprise Institute labor policy expert Sean Higgins said the agency claimed there were problems of waste and abuse with the practice…

News Release
Transportation Sec Sean Duffy announces immediate review of CAFE standards: CEI analysis
CEI applauds U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for directing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to commence an immediate review and reconsideration of all…

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…
Search Posts
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…