Exam 502 study guide and reference

American Transportation Policy

Robert Jay Dilger

Transportation is recognized for the indispensable role it has and in hope that it will become more effective, certain people have produced debates regarding whether it is the private sector or the public sector that should be given total authority over the business. Governments were often criticized for intervening in certain industries, given that in most cases they failed to competently manage the segment they were leading. It is difficult to determine whether governments would do a good job at taking care of transportation, since there are numerous variables involved in this matter.

While governments in particular countries have successfully managed to administer fields that are typically run by the private sector, others have failed severely at doing such a thing. For the time being (that is, until a proper model of government leadership will be devised) it is not advisable for the public sector to take on duties managed by the private sector.

Governments have reportedly expressed more interest in particular domains concomitantly to ignoring others. When taking into consideration the fact that the American government has had a tendency to build and improve highways while mass transit was paid little attention to, one is unlikely to support the government in interfering in other domains (Dilger 2). Because of its character, the government is involuntary engaging in performing actions that ignore segments of the public.

Question 2:

The U.S. is presently considered to be world leader because of the positive features it proved to have all across the twentieth century. However, its position is undermined by the slow progress it experienced in the recent years. Civilian air transport has been one of the main topics the transportation system has dealt with in the last period. Mostly because of the 9/11 events, the U.S. government has intervened in this field of transport and has installed a structure meant to facilitate safe travel by plane concomitantly with reducing the risk of terrorist threats. Everything appeared to be going well consequent to the implementation of this system.

Matters are presently different and U.S. air transport has come to be inefficient, as it cannot match air transport controlled by other countries. With the U.S. gradually losing its position as world leader, it seems that all of its problems are emerging, waiting to be discussed.

It is unlikely that the country will be able to restructure its air transport system in the following three years. This is because it still has troubles recovering from the 9/11 events. It is almost as if the government is paranoid when it comes to air transport, feeling that it should not be supervised by the private sector. This is likely to continue for some years now, until the U.S. government will be willing to allow the private sector to take over. Matters are critical, and if the private sector will be given complete authority over air transport the U.S.'s influence is likely to descend even more (Dilger 72).

Question 3:

All across the twentieth century the U.S. has struggled to become independent when it came to the production of oil. Considering the Arab oil embargo in 1973, it seems natural for the U.S. To want to lessen its dependence on foreign oil. U.S. transportation can be severely affected if the country's oil suppliers lessen the amount of oil they provide to the U.S. Or simply refuse to supply it.

When it comes to reduction in oil supplies, transportation is not the only domain that is likely to become affected in the U.S., considering that domestic prosperity and national security are also threatened by this (Dilger 46).

Question 4: