IMPACTS OF INCREASING FREIGHT RAILWAY TARIFFS ON STATE ECONOMY

Abstract

Based on global experience, the article proves the necessity of improving the analysis of regulatory impact of legislative acts, which is the main instrument of state regulation quality assurance. Recent years display the trend of temporal inland traffic freight railway tariffs increase. The last increase was approved by the corresponding Order of the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine dd. August 11, 2021 qualified as a regulatory act, which is subject to compulsory regulatory impact analysis according to the Methodology approved at the national level.
The national methodology does not provide for assessment of impacts on state economy. In view of this, the assessment was completed for the possible impact of regulatory act work on the state economy according to the methodological approach developed by the State Organization “Institute of the Economy and Forecasting of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine”, which main point is a more comprehensive and sophisticated quantitative assessment of the direct regulatory impact on the field of economic interest of both citizens, economic entities, state, and the society in general (national economy). The impact assessment of the freight railway tariffs’ increase on national economy followed two perspectives: the possible impact on GDP and the competition within the traffic infrastructure of Ukraine.
The contribution of JSC “Ukrzaliznytsia” into GDP of Ukraine is computed based on freight railway tariffs increase. The article proves that the Order of the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine will have the effects on intermodal competition within the transport system of Ukraine through the redistribution of the freight traffic as, on the one hand, certain off-grade freights will be handled by the river and motor transport and, on the other hand, specific 3rd rate class freights will be handled by the rail transport. Such redistribution will have positive effects for the competitive position of rail transport on the inner freight traffic market because the loss of some off-grade freights, which transport is unprofitable, will not have a negative impact on rail facilities.