Editorial: Bus service essential to all transit improvements

[Hermod]

How many private companies are honestly qualified to transport 140,000 Detroiiters a day?

I am not sure of the exact numbers, but the Fairfax Connector bus service in Fairfax County, VA is contractor operated and seems to work well.

Google "Her..." and "Veolia" for large public transport system contract operators.


Edit: for some reason, it keeps editing out the last three letters of H-E-R-Z-O-G

[ghettopalmetto]

Why not just have a transit agency adopt Veolia's business practices, cut out the profit, and save money for the taxpayer?

[Detroitnerd]

Why not just have a transit agency adopt Veolia's business practices, cut out the profit, and save money for the taxpayer?

That would be like ... COMMUNISM.

Remember, anything where you COULD take a profit must be privatized so legal graft can take place.

Anything that's inherently unprofitable [[insuring nuclear reactors, etc.) must be SOCIALIZED to saddle the taxpayer with junk.

[Wesley Mouch]

Why not just have a transit agency adopt Veolia's business practices, cut out the profit, and save money for the taxpayer?

That's exactly the right recipe. But when we try and do that here, we get corruption, incompetence, bureaucracy, with a gigantic dash of spend now / pay later. That's the only reason to privatize.

The best system would be publicly owned and operated. But its pretty clear that its as likely here as flying unicorns.

btw, love all your posts on this, GP. People have no idea how it all works. That said, if government would let its monopoly go on bus service, for example, I think we'd be surprised how it is totally possible to make money privately. Don't necessarily think bus. It might be more jitneys, or smaller busses. A private company [[with no requirements at all) might run the operation very differently.

[ghettopalmetto]

People have no idea how it all works. That said, if government would let its monopoly go on bus service, for example, I think we'd be surprised how it is totally possible to make money privately. Don't necessarily think bus. It might be more jitneys, or smaller busses. A private company [[with no requirements at all) might run the operation very differently.

There isn't a damned thing stopping anyone from starting their own bus system in Detroit, or anywhere else. If there's money to be made, why isn't anyone making it?

I mean, how hard can it be?

Step 1: Run buses up-and-down the street

Step 2: ?????

Step 3: Profit

[Wesley Mouch]

There isn't a damned thing stopping anyone from starting their own bus system in Detroit, or anywhere else. If there's money to be made, why isn't anyone making it?

I mean, how hard can it be?

Step 1: Run buses up-and-down the street

Step 2: ?????

Step 3: Profit

Can't do it. The city forbids it. A few years ago some operators tried. Papers reported their demise. Can't compete w/ city hall!

[ghettopalmetto]

Can't do it. The city forbids it. A few years ago some operators tried. Papers reported their demise. Can't compete w/ city hall!

The City forbids it where? In legal statute? Come on. If cabs aren't prevented from "competing" with DDOT, then there's certainly a legal loophole somewhere. If someone were serious enough about the money to be made on public transit, and the anti-competitive nature of said statutes, we would have seen a court case by now, yes?

[professorscott]

The City forced the private transit operators [[who were at the time making a profit) out of business in the 1920s. Ken Schramm has written extensively about this. After that time, the massive amount of money poured into the infrastructure necessary for absolutely everyone to be able to drive a private car absolutely everywhere doomed transit from ever being able to break even again, much less make a profit.

It is not possible in the United States for mass transit to break even or make a profit. People are not willing to pay what it actually costs to transport them. This has been studied to death, but needlessly: the actual evidence is unarguable. Every single public transit operation in North America requires heavy government subsidies - but then so do roads, airports and every other way to move people around.

[stasu1213]

The City forbids it where? In legal statute? Come on. If cabs aren't prevented from "competing" with DDOT, then there's certainly a legal loophole somewhere. If someone were serious enough about the money to be made on public transit, and the anti-competitive nature of said statutes, we would have seen a court case by now, yes?

Not if some entity had lobbied against private mass transportation or bought off some political leaders with in the main office or on the charter commision board. The object is for everyone to own their personal transportation. That is what President Roosevelt had promised in the 1930; a chicken in every pot and a CAR in every garage. The American Dream. Get away from the rat infested cluttered urban areas and escape to the suburbs. A land flowing with milk and honey. That is what the automobile industry had pushed. You may say "Why not use cabs as a form of transportation?" Everyone can't afford to start there own cab business for it cost a forturne to get that little plate that goes on the back of the cab. The goal for the big three at the time is EVERYONE owns a car. Money for them is not being made if a private owned or better operated public owned transportation system is made easily accesable.

[Hypestyles]

The Presidenta and/or the governor should issue an executive order that forces the tri-county area to come up with a formal regional partnership on transit.