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The deregulation of international trucking in the European Union: form and effect

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Abstract

We describe the regulatory regime under which international trucking operated in Western Europe until the mid-1980s, the deregulatory process that followed, and the effect of this deregulation. We find that deregulation had a large positive effect on the growth of international trucking. We also find that shippers shifted toward more outsourcing of their trucking needs, but this occurred to an even greater extent in local and national road transport. We conclude that other factors beside the deregulation of international trucking affected the organization of the industry at the time. Finally, despite concerns voiced by member countries, we find no evidence that deregulation disproportionately favored carriers of countries that were initially more (or less) involved in international trucking, nor that it has favored low-wage countries.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, 701 Tappan St., Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA

    Francine Lafontaine

  2. Economic and Social Research Institute, Whitaker Square, Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2, Ireland

    Laura Malaguzzi Valeri

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  1. Francine Lafontaine
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  2. Laura Malaguzzi Valeri
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Correspondence to Francine Lafontaine.

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Lafontaine, F., Malaguzzi Valeri, L. The deregulation of international trucking in the European Union: form and effect. J Regul Econ 35, 19–44 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11149-008-9066-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11149-008-9066-z

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