A MANUFACTURER'S VIEW OF THE TRANSIT MARKET

With only one survivor among five firms that had produced transit cars in the U.S. in the past decade, the author observes that foreign competition did not drive U.S. firms out of the market but rather moved to fill the vacuum produced when U.S. carbuilders quit. While operators need stable manufacturers to produce reliable cars which can be supported throughout their entire life cycle, suppliers need also a market which they can afford to serve. Barriers to such a stable, profitable transit-car market include absence of a consistent policy at DOT and UMTA; the sealed, low-bid procurement policy which is required; the use of detailed specifications which inhibits designer innovation; and absence of uniformity among cars of various systems.

• Corporate Authors:

  American Public Transit Association

  1225 Connecticut Avenue, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20036
• Authors:
  • Schlemmer, C J
• Publication Date: 1980

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 5-12
• Serial:
  • Transit Journal
  • Volume: 6
  • Issue Number: 3

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Carbuilders; Passenger cars; Policy; Rapid transit cars; Specifications; Standardization; Technology
• Identifier Terms: U.S. Urban Mass Transportation Administration
• Geographic Terms: Europe; Japan
• Old TRIS Terms: Government policies
• Subject Areas: Operations and Traffic Management; Passenger Transportation; Policy; Public Transportation; Railroads; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00322787
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 30 1982 12:00AM