Verizon stopped FIOS rollout because regulation made it unattractive. We were set to get FIOS in Wilmington. The government demanded Verizon build it throughout the city, which made no sense because most of the city is a ghetto. The government wouldn't budge and we got no FIOS.

As for water pipes: in many places they're a century old and leeching toxins into the drinking water. My wife worked on a project at Northwestern that studied this issue in Midwest cities. Outside a few rich cities, infrastructure like water is in terrible shape. Because there's not much profit motive in building dumb pipes, and the municipalities don't have the money to give much public subsidy.