Costs of Operating Exempt For-Hire Motor Carriers of Agricultural Commodities: A Pilot Study in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia

Excerpts from the report: For-hire motor carriers of certain agricultural commodities are exempt from economic regulation by the Interstate Commerce Commission. These trucking firms move large quantities of agricultural commodities from producing areas to storage, processing, and consumption points. They have the available capacity to serve both shippers and receivers and the exemption from regulations of routes and rates makes the use of this space very flexible. This pilot study presents cost data on the operation of 25 motor carriers of exempt agricultural commodities whose home offices are in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. Four trucking firm operators were interviewed in Delaware, five in Maryland, and sixteen in Virginia. Firms were selected in these States because they are near Washington, D. C