Robert Gallamore and John Meter 528 pages hardcover
Once an icon of American industry, railroads fell into a long decline
beginning around the turn of the twentieth century. Overburdened with
regulation and often displaced by barge traffic on government-maintained
waterways, trucking on interstate highways, and jet aviation, railroads
measured their misfortune in lost market share, abandoned track,
bankruptcies, and unemployment. Today, however, as Robert Gallamore and
John Meyer demonstrate, rail transportation is reviving, rescued by new
sources of traffic and advanced technology, as well as less onerous
bureaucracy.
In 1970, Congress responded to the industry's plight by consolidating
most passenger rail service nationwide into Amtrak. But private-sector
freight service was left to succeed or fail on its own. The renaissance
in freight traffic began in 1980 with the Staggers Rail Act, which
allowed railroad companies to contract with customers for services and
granted freedom to set most rates based on market supply and demand.
Railroads found new business hauling low-sulfur coal and grain long
distances in redesigned freight cars, while double-stacked container
cars moved a growing volume of both international and domestic goods.
Today, trains have smaller crews, operate over better track, and are
longer and heavier than ever before.
Near the end of the twentieth century, after several difficult but
important mergers, privately owned railroads increased their investments
in safe, energy-efficient, environmentally friendly freight
transportation. American Railroads tells a riveting story about how this crucial U.S. industry managed to turn itself around.
