The correct answer is A) it provided the means for better organization.
Consolidation affected the railroad industry and influenced modern business practices in that it provided the means for better organization.
Consolidation in the US railroads was the time between the 1880s and 1890s when wealthy people such as JP Morgan and Jay Gould made more money selling and buying railroad stocks. This happened because railroads played a key role in developing the economy of the United States because trade and transportation improved a lot with the trains.
The other options of the question were b) it set standards for computerizing cost analysis, c) it made regulation easier, and d) it created a sense of unity within the industry.