Treating railroads like the post office to be centrally planned threatens to shackle one of America’s greatest economic success stories.

The Trump administration’s broad economic philosophy has been anchored by a refreshing and necessary return to deregulation. From rolling back stifling domestic red tape to releasing a forward-looking AI Action Plan, the administration has consistently recognized a foundational truth: America’s private sector — not government central planners — should drive technological progress and economic growth.

The message has been clear: Set open pathways for innovation and avoid federal gatekeeping.

It is baffling, then, to watch the administration and key members of Congress uncharacteristically pivot toward heavy-handed, pro-regulatory and anti-technology intervention when it comes to one of the most vital arteries of American commerce: railroads.

A sudden bipartisan appetite has emerged in Washington for micromanaging rail operations. Lawmakers are moving to dictate exactly how railroad companies must organize their work and deploy their workforces. This impulse to treat railroads like the post office to be centrally planned, rather than a dynamic industry governed by market forces, threatens to shackle one of America’s greatest economic success stories.

To understand what is at stake, one must look at the profound and broad economic impact of rail efficiency. Railroads were essential to the development of American industry — allowing the U.S. to surpass Europe about 130 years ago — by providing business access to markets and supplies.

As the Trump administration seeks to revitalize domestic manufacturing, rails are poised to play a vital role. For American manufacturing, rail efficiency is not a luxury; it is a baseline requirement for survival. Efficient freight rail acts as a foundational shock absorber for national supply chains and a shield protecting the global competitiveness of our exporters.

In Europe, where railroads faced heavy state involvement, costs per ton-mile are twice as expensive as in the U.S.

America’s current rail supremacy is the direct fruit of deregulation. Following the Staggers Rail Act of 1980, the United States unshackled its railroads, allowing private operators to compete, set market-driven rates and dynamically reinvest in their own infrastructure.

The results speak for themselves, especially compared internationally. In Europe, where railroads face heavy state involvement, costs per ton-mile are twice as high as in the U.S. The U.S. model proves that private property, market-driven capacity allocation and freedom from bureaucratic overreach yield some of the lowest shipping costs and highest productivity in the world.

But that historic advantage is now being challenged on a new frontier: artificial intelligence. American rail companies have developed world-leading technologies that can monitor track conditions in real time, deploy predictive maintenance and optimize network operations with remarkable precision.

The core issue facing U.S. railroads today is not a lack of innovation; it is a lack of regulatory adaptability. While American rail companies possess advanced AI tools, foreign competitors are moving aggressively to exploit structural advantages. In both China and Europe, rail infrastructure operates more closely as a single, coordinated system. China’s “railway brain” initiative utilizes AI and centralized digital twins to coordinate freight lanes, dramatically improving reliability and efficiency.

When Washington imposes rigid operational mandates, it ties the hands of rail operators, preventing them from dynamically integrating AI into routing and safety inspections.

If the United States is to continue to beat China and Europe in the AI rail race, it cannot succeed by copying their state-directed models — the U.S. does not have a single, state-directed track system, nor should it want one. Instead, America must lean into its unique advantage: nimbleness born of economic freedom.

When Washington imposes rigid operational mandates, it ties the hands of rail operators, freezing them in legacy workflows and preventing them from dynamically integrating AI into their routing and safety inspections. Rigid operational dictates cause infrastructure investment to plummet, ultimately degrading track quality and severely hurting long-term economic productivity.

If the Trump administration and Congress want to protect America’s manufacturing and secure its technological edge, they must reject the temptation to constrain innovation by centrally planning the rail industry. Washington needs to stay on the deregulatory path that built America’s modern supply chain. The markets, guided by the incentive to innovate, should decide how railroads organize their work. It’s time for the government to step off the tracks and let American ingenuity run.