Term Paper on "Transportation economics adn the influencing factors"

Term Paper 5 pages (1530 words) Sources: 5 February 17, 2018

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Transportation Economics

The High Speed Rail (HSR) is a significant part of the presidents stimulus package and it was aimed at providing the solution to congestion along the highways and in the urban areas. Apart from being deemed to be a mass carrier, the HSR is said to be faster and more comfortable than the original train line. The HSR is capable of reaching speeds of up to 200 km/p hence poplar in some parts of the world such as China.

However, even amidst the promises that come with the HSR, there are serious disadvantages that befall the system. One serious challenge is the land or environmental damage and occupation challenge that comes with it. The HSR is meant to travel at high speeds hence the designers avoid sharp bends, consequently they end up displacing people from their residential places and also massively destroying natural resources like forests, wetlands, swamps, dams and spring areas all in the name of achieving straight rail lines.

The second challenge of HSR is the cost factor. The costs are extremely high, yet there are many people who still rely on personal cars and buses especially when they travel short distances, leading to a deficit. The maintenance costs add to the high recurrent expenditure hence making most government projects, like the HSR impractical due to the cost factor. The HSR is also suitable only to those travelling long distances from one city to another, leaving out a larger significant population not served by it. The contemporary work environment is also coming back home to the laptop hence more people do not need to travel to work each day, this will in the near future keep increasing hence laving the HSR redundant. There is also not assurance that passengers will be available since the forecast for passenger numbers uncertain. The other alternatives of increasing the length on the existing routes can work much better and serve more populations in a more practical manner than building some few yet massively expensive HSR (The Railroad Network, 2011).

Federal jurisdiction and the State and Local governments

The three levels of government have been inexistence since the formation of the national government. It is important to note that there were constitutions for the various states that helped run the state governments even before the singular national constitution was drafted. However, the national constitution gave the powers to the federal government to be the higher level of all the three tiers of governments. This means if there is a dispute over the road use in any part of the country, then the federal directions will stand supreme as to how the issue has to be handled.

The state and local governments have varying organization across the US yet they have common features that are specific. No matter their design, state and local governments will always have a significant impact on the lives of the locals than the federal government will have. The issuance of the birth, marriage and death certificates are often done by the state and local governments and not the national government. There are school policies that are formulated by the state governments. They are also responsible for the determination of the driving age and the qualifications one has to meet in order to be licensed driver. The state governments also are custodians of laws to do with rape, murder, theft and have the responsibility of protecting citizens from criminals. These are among the critical issues that are not decided upon by the Washington authorities so far away, but by the local and the state officials.

However, there are some issue that are unique to the federal government alone and cannot be presided over by the state and local governments. The federal works handle issues and laws touching on the entire nation such as border security, the national defense issues, workplace safety and the foreign affairs. The federal government will also intervene in the event that there is a natural disaster of great magnitude, for instance of several hundreds of houses are on fire or thousands square miles are on fire then there is a likelihood of thee being a federal intervention. It is also important to note that the higher levels of governments are sovereign over the lower levels of government (Roberts M, 2017).

Effects of NAFTA

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been in existence since its promulgation in 1994 with the sole purpose of promoting trade ties between Mexico, US and Canada. The main activities that have been witnessed are exchange of goods and services over the years. It has also allowed ease of movement as it created porous borders across these nations and their citizens have been empowered by the conditions presented by NAFTA to move across the borders.

However, even though NAFTA has been widely considered to be beneficial to the entire trade block, it has been detrimental in significant measures to the singular livelihoods of the US citizens. Through the free movement of labor, there have been job losses among the US citizens as an estimated 682,900 jobs went to Mexico between 1994 and 2010. 80% of these loses were in the manufacturing sector with Michigan, Texas, New York and California being the hardest hit states. NAFTA also led to the suppression of the US wages since many manufacturers threatened to move to Mexico hence locking out Unions from negotiating for higher salaries and the workers settling for the bare minimum wages to keep their jobs and industries. The other challenge is that the small scale Mexican farmers were put out of trade by the large American grain producers who sold their produce to Mexico at subsidized prices such that the small scale farmers could not compete. NAFTA also led to the exploitation of the Maquiladora workers by the USA companies that were established close to the border on the Mexican side, manufactured items and exported back to the USA, but exploited cheap Mexican labor where workers did not have rights. The Mexican environment also suffered since the pressure in farming resulted into the excessive use of fertilizers to keep at pace with the larger American farmers, the hitherto forest land in Mexico were cultivated in mass in order to keep at pace with the demand and competition hence significantly and negatively affecting the environment (Amadeo K., 2018). These major challenges, that if not checked, can continue being grossly detrimental to the region hence there is need for Congress to handle the NAFTA provisions and change the terms of trade and relations, or even better do away with NAFTA in its totality.

The impact of recession on LCCs

The low cost carriers (LCCs) which had their second wave advent in the early 1990s has seen the exponential growth of the transport industry and the subsequent traffic growth. The low cost carriers provided the various affordable options for travelers on different missions, from business, to visitations, holidays or eve recreational journeys.

The economic recession however dealt a significant blow to the LCC business leading to reduced demand for the airline services with stronger competition emerging, expansion of low cost carriers seeing fleets being several times larger than the traditional air carriers. Due to the recession, the LCC faced unprecedented competition also from the alternative modes of transport like the fast trains which offered comfort, speed and cheaper at the end of it all. The recession also changed companies from traditional ways of operating to rational operation which saw them eliminate unnecessary costs including the change in business travelling. The business class travelers, who were the biggest revenue contributors for the traditional carriers now focused their travelling to LCC or the fast trains as a way of minimizing costs. As a consequence, the LCC have experienced increased long distance travelers which has been… READ MORE

How to Reference "Transportation economics adn the influencing factors" Term Paper in a Bibliography

Related Term Papers:

Transportation Economics Essay

Transportation Economics

Despite the fact that NAFTA was passed under the leadership of a Democratic president, it became a contentious issue in the race for the Democratic primary of 2010:… read more

Essay 4 pages (1460 words) Sources: 5 Topic: Transportation / Mass Transit

---

Process of Economic Development Essay

Economic Development

Role of Geography and institutions in economic development

Over the years, there have been debates on the role that geography of a nation or continent plays in contribution… read more

Essay 5 pages (1394 words) Sources: 0 Topic: Economics / Finance / Banking

---

Economics Is the Study of How Markets Essay

Economics is the study of how markets work. It is based around describing the patterns and interrelations of the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. Microeconomics is concerned… read more

Essay 3 pages (931 words) Sources: 1 Topic: Economics / Finance / Banking

---

Economic Indicators Assessment

Economic Indicators

Savings Rate

Economic Indicator- the savings rate is the income that is not spent and is instead differed for consumption. In some instances, saving can also include reducing… read more

Assessment 3 pages (1288 words) Sources: 8 Topic: Economics / Finance / Banking

---

View 100+ more related papers  >>