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Originally Posted by deelt
Curitiba's buses are privately-owned by ten companies, managed by a quasi-public company. With this public-private collaboration, public sector concerns (e.g. safety, accessibility, and efficiency) are combined private
sector goals (e.g. low maintenance and operating costs). The bus companies
receive no subsidies; instead all mass transit money collected goes to a
fund and companies are paid on a distance travelled basis.
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Typically, in order to create a successful publically operated transit system, a government needs to create a monopoly by eliminating all existing and future competition on the same routes. This is because a government-operated transit system will always be more expensive than the 1983 Toyota Tercel alternative.
In the case of Santo Domingo, though, you can imagine the complications. Could the monopoly be created? At what cost? Strikes? Riots? Could passenger charges be kept under control? How much abuse and looting of the system by the politicians and unions? Would the system collapse at the first sign of service outages? Etc., etc.
For this reason, I don't think a publically operated transit system makes sense. To me, licensing and regulating two competing transit concessionaires to operate on the same or similar routes makes a lot more sense as a method for ensuring safe efficient operation and controlled costs.