Estimating Maintenance-of-Way Costs for U.S. Railroads After Deregulation

Author(s):  
C. Gregory Bereskin

The movement of freight on railroads, like most transportation services, is subject to a number of restrictions that make costing of specific traffic a complex process. Among these restrictions are conditions of joint production; economies of scale, scope, and density; and a lack of data on specific expenditures as related to individual freight movements. Yet costing of specific movements is a desirable activity for shippers, railroads, and regulatory bodies. Traditionally, movement costing has involved the use of accounting-based allocative costing models such as the Uniform Rail Costing System developed by the Interstate Commerce Commission for use in regulatory hearings. Most econometric studies have aimed at characterizing the underlying economic nature of costs with little or no application to the cost of providing a specific service, and as such they may be of little use in costing specific traffic. Moving beyond the historic econometric costing models’ application of economic analysis, cost behavior is evaluated for a single sector of railroad activity. The process involves four steps. First, a consistent econometric model of total railroad expenditures is developed by applying a translog function within a multidimensional definition of railroad output. Second, the model is decomposed into individual partial-elasticity estimates relative to each of the several related intermediate output measures within the framework of a total differential of the cost function. Next, specific traffic movements are defined relative to the measures of rail output. Finally, the total differential is applied using several simplifying assumptions to yield estimates of incremental (marginal) costs for the specific traffic definition.

Author(s):  
C. Gregory Bereskin

The movement of freight on railroads is subject to a number of technological characteristics that make costing of specific traffic a complex process. Among these restrictions are conditions of joint production, economies of scale, scope, and density, and a lack of data on specific expenditures related to individual freight movements. In this paper, an econometric cost model using publicly available data and methodology is developed for the examination of average and marginal costs in the industry. The model is decomposed into individual elasticity estimates for operating parameters to examine economies of scope. Finally, the size of the firm is varied through multiplying the capital stock measurements and estimating the cost behavior as firm capital stock is varied between one-quarter and two times the level of 2005. Results indicate that the railroad industry has effectively exhausted the possible economies of scale but can still gain from economies of density and scope. In addition, there appears to be little economic justification for mergers creating transcontinental railroad systems.


2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 46
Author(s):  
Rasoul Rezvanian ◽  
Nanda Rangan ◽  
Richard Grabowski

This study examines the changes in the cost structure of banking firms using data from pre and post deregulation periods. A translog cost function is utilized for the analyses of economies of scale and scope. The results indicate that the average cost curves, although U-shaped flattened over time, resulting in an increase in optimal bank size. Economies of scope that existed prior to deregulation appears to be exhausted in a more nonconstrained environment.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1357633X2098277
Author(s):  
Molly Jacobs ◽  
Patrick M Briley ◽  
Heather Harris Wright ◽  
Charles Ellis

Introduction Few studies have reported information related to the cost-effectiveness of traditional face-to-face treatments for aphasia. The emergence and demand for telepractice approaches to aphasia treatment has resulted in an urgent need to understand the costs and cost-benefits of this approach. Methods Eighteen stroke survivors with aphasia completed community-based aphasia telerehabilitation treatment, utilizing the Language-Oriented Treatment (LOT) delivered via Webex videoconferencing program. Marginal benefits to treatment were calculated as the change in Western Aphasia Battery-Revised (WAB-R) score pre- and post-treatment and marginal cost of treatment was calculated as the relationship between change in WAB-R aphasia quotient (AQ) and the average cost per treatment. Controlling for demographic variables, Bayesian estimation evaluated the primary contributors to WAB-R change and assessed cost-effectiveness of treatment by aphasia type. Results Thirteen out of 18 participants experienced significant improvement in WAB-R AQ following telerehabilitation delivered therapy. Compared to anomic aphasia (reference group), those with conduction aphasia had relatively similar levels of improvement whereas those with Broca’s aphasia had smaller improvement. Those with global aphasia had the largest improvement. Each one-point of improvement cost between US$89 and US$864 for those who improved (mean = US$200) depending on aphasia type/severity. Discussion Individuals with severe aphasia may have the greatest gains per unit cost from treatment. Both improvement magnitude and the cost per unit of improvement were driven by aphasia type, severity and race. Economies of scale to aphasia treatment–cost may be minimized by treating a variety of types of aphasia at various levels of severity.


1999 ◽  
Vol 89 (3) ◽  
pp. 585-604 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen W Salant ◽  
Greg Shaffer

Oligopoly models where prior actions by firms affect subsequent marginal costs have been useful in illuminating policy debates in areas such as antitrust regulation, environmental protection, and international competition. We discuss properties of such models when a Cournot equilibrium occurs at the second stage. Aggregate production costs strictly decline with no change in gross revenue or gross consumer surplus if the prior actions strictly increase the variance of marginal costs without changing the marginal-cost sum. Therefore, unless the cost of inducing second-stage asymmetry more than offsets this reduction in production costs, the private and social optima are asymmetric. (JEL D43, L13, L40)


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anggelika S. Nangin ◽  
Grace B. Nangoi ◽  
Victorina Z. Tirayoh

CV. Satu Satu Media Utama in calculating the cost of the product, has not calculated carefully, causing problems for the company that are unknown in detail and impact the selling price of the company's products. CV. Satu Satu Media Utama is a company engaged in Digital Printing Industry. This study aims to determine the role of Job Order Costing in determining the selling price of the product, using the method of calculating Full Costing and Variable Costing. Method of data analysis used in this research is descriptive qualitative. The results of research for the implementation of Job Order Costing system, the company has applied in the collection of product cost, but in the calculation of the cost of the company's products does not include marketing costs and depreciation costs of the machine into the calculation of overhead costs, and the company has not entered the price card of the order as the auxiliary card in the determination product selling price.Keywords: Job order costing, factory overhead cost, selling price


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 125
Author(s):  
Agung Listiadi

Cost is an important factor in ensuring the company win in the competition on the market. Consumers will choose a manufacturer that is able to produce products and services that have high quality with low prices. Costs of Management Systems Contemporary emphasis on search than the allocation. And management based activities are at the heart of contemporary operating control system. At least two major factors that must be considered in the selection of cost driver (cost driver) are: the cost of measurement and the degree of correlation between the consumption cost driver with the actual overhead. Cost driver is divided into two categories, namely the structural cost driver and executional cost driver. Cost driver is the basis used to charge collected on cost pool to the product. So that the calculation of the cost through Time Driven activity-based costing system, the company obtain more precise information and accurate.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 152
Author(s):  
Lina Fuad Hussien

The purpose of this study is to analyze the asymmetry in cost behavior (cost stickiness) and to identify the impact of CEOs' compensation on the degree of cost stickiness behavior. The study population consists of the public shareholding companies listed on the ASE, which number (56) industrial company. Data were collected from (35) industrial companies for the period (2009 - 2019). To measure the degree of costs stickiness, The Model of Weiss (2010) was used. The Model of Weiss (2010) takes into account the costs and changes in the level of activity (sales) for the last four quarters of the company, Weiss (2010) model constructs the difference in logarithmic ratios of changes in cost. The study found that the CEO's compensation in Jordanian industrial companies consists of two forms. The companies pay fixed salaries or performance-related bonuses. The study found that the form of compensation that is paid to the CEO affects the behavior of managers. The results indicated that the performance-related rewards are accompanied by a decrease in the level of cost stickiness, and the compensation paid in the form of fixed salaries are accompanied by a high level of cost stickiness. The study recommends that companies should understand the role of the compensation form in administrative decisions, especially with regard to resource modifications, as management motives in relation to resource modifications must be taken into account because of their clear and direct impact on the cost structure of companies.


2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephany Ch. Pelleng ◽  
Herman Karamoy ◽  
Victorina Tirajoh

Nowadays, every company has to have a right and efficient way to know their own pricing process. The better the company count it, the better it would be to compete in the market because the right method or system will decrease the cost and increase the profit. Activity Based Costing System is a method of calculating the cost of goods manufactured based on activities in a company using more cost driver, so it can calculate more accurate. This method is expected to be applied to the PT. Sarimelati Kencana who still using the traditional system for calculating the cost of goods manufactured. This research has a purpose to know the cost of goods manufactured in the company using activity based costing system. There are qualitative and quantitative data on this project. Qualitative data for company profile and quantitative data for production costs. This is descriptive research and the result shows that the pricing process using ABC method give overcost condition for pizza hut personal and undercost condition for pizza hut regular and large.


2020 ◽  
Vol 214 ◽  
pp. 01031
Author(s):  
Ziyang Li ◽  
Xi Cheng ◽  
Mengwei Zhang ◽  
Xian Wen

Cost management is the core issue related to the development of enterprises, and studying enterprise cost behavior will contribute to optimizing enterprise decisions. However, an enterprise is not an independent organization. Instead, it exists and is affected by the macroeconomic environment. So it is conducive for company to apply macroenvironment information to cost management behaviors. This paper studies the cost stickiness based on the perspective of macroeconomic uncertainty, and takes “adjustment cost” and “agency problems” as the internal logic to integrate into the existing interpretation framework of cost stickiness. We analyze SG&A costs for Chinese listed firms over the period 2013 – 2019 after controlling for known economic determinants. The results show a positive relation between the macroeconomic uncertainty and the degree of cost asymmetry. In particular, the macroeconomic uncertainty makes the cost stickiness of human resource cost weaken.


2021 ◽  
pp. 39-45
Author(s):  
Z. A. Kapelyuk ◽  
Y. V. Popova

The article analyzes the experience of tariff regulation of the cost of passenger railway transportation services in the European Union and the Russian Federation. The features of tariff regulation are disclosed and eleven countries are classified according to the main categories. Tariff policy for transport services is used to ensure the consistency of economic interests of consumers and is a problematic segment for all types of transport. The article deals with tariff regulation of the cost of services provided by the railway infrastructure. Comparison of domestic and foreign experience in pricing of transport services for further development of Russian Railways is carried out. The setting of tariffs and available discounts, as well as benefits for the purchase of tickets for trains in the countries of the European Union and Russia are considered. The indexation of tariffs for transportation services of Russian Railways depending on the period of the trip and the comfort of the car is analyzed. Conclusions on the impact of mobile tariffs on economic efficiency, as well as the need to improve the tariff policy in the Russian Federation by involving foreign transport companies in implementation.


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