ABSTRACT
In the opinion of the I.T.F. transport within a regulated competition should in principle be subject to the general laws of supply and demand. The resulting loss of income may in both instances only be restricted to tolerable limits if the particular branch of the transport industry is protected from competition by fairly extensive measures. The original industrial purpose of the ad valorem scale consisted in charging goods of higher value with larger part of overheads and to increase the transportability of bulk goods by applying to them rates which only cover a small fraction of their share of overheads. Competition between the branches of the transport industry will result in a trend towards a more accentuated reduction of rates for medium and longer distances which is bound to benefit the remoter areas. Any differentiation which involves higher charges on goods of higher value is bound to lose its importance with increasing competition between the branches of the transport industry.
