>The reason you don't want to do that is because the private enterprise wants to maximize its profits. There is nothing wrong with that but in order to do so they will cut corners where ever possible and do the absolute minimum for upkeep.

Government does this and when they do it it's much, much harder to hold them accountable. Look at the Big Dig or anything the MTA touches.

When a private company acts like this and the public notices there's at least the risk that some politicians will latch on to the issue (no politician ever lost public support by being tough on a company that was mistreating the public). When government is the wrongdoer it's needs to get incredibly bad before the other parts of government hold them accountable.

Part of the problem with the Big Dig were the government was defrauded by a materials supplier who used substandard in order to cut costs.

you do realize that across the US there is nearly a hundred billion dollars of deferred maintenance to light rail lines used in most cities? Look at all the maintenance issues just with NYC subway system which is considered the best in the US. Plus they have the ability to provide rides for less than cost and recoup it by other means, taxes on unrelated activities.

I find this idea really odd that a private company is going to cut corners. The fact is it has been the public projects that have cut corners. A private company always has the incentive to stay profitable and cutting corners is not how you play the long term game. Unlike the public held transport agencies they cannot just ask for a bailout or tax increase

Private company and long term game are oxymorons in today's business climate. It's the rare company that thinks beyond the next quarter, and in almost all cases, those companies are not publicly traded.