President Jimmy Carter didn’t just deregulate airline prices. He also deregulated much of the trucking industry, as well. Trucks carry almost all of the consumer goods that you purchase, so almost every time you purchase something, you’re paying money to a trucking company.

a. Based on what happened in the airline in dustry after prices were deregulated, what do you think happened in the trucking industry after deregulation? You can find some answers here: http://www.econlib.org/

Library/Enc1/Trucking Deregulation.html.

For another look that is critical of trucking deregulation, but comes to basically the same answers, see Michael Belzer, 2000. Sweatshops on Wheels: Winners and Losers in Trucking Deregulation. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

b. Who do you think asked Congress and the president to keep price floors for trucking: consumer groups, retail shops like Wal-Mart, or the trucking companies? ki5