The
Hong Kong subway system is possibly the world's fastest and most efficient system of
public transportation.
Hong Kong is infamous for its
traffic jams, which was similar in scale to
Los Angeles. The
roads are narrow and there are too many
cars in the city. In the 1960's the
Hong Kong government began a massive construction project to rapidly build a
subway system to span the
city, including an underwater
tunnel to connect
Victoria Island and the
Peninsula.
Based on the London subway model, eventually three lines were constructed. The system was integrated with the Hong Kong railway and bus systems, making it possible to go almost anywhere in the city on public transportation. In a city of seven million, HK's public transportation system moves over a million people daily. It is prompt, fast, and safe. The newest line links Hong Kong's new airport to Central. It even lets you check your luggage in at the terminal so you don't have to carry it over on the train.
You can guess what the secret of success is. It's because the whole thing is privately owned. The MTR Corporation, MTR being the public transportation company, runs the show. It's extremely efficient and sucks up no citizens' tax dollars. Despite the fact that the government provides minimal subsidies to the company, they managed to provide excellent quality yet cheap services to the public. If it was publicly owned, it would no doubt be slow, inefficient and expensive. See also Sydney's public transportation system.
And don't give me any argument about how the government keeps prices down. If they raised prices, people would stop taking the subway. It's called supply and demand. They would have to lower prices again. More proof that private ownership is infinitely superior to public ownership.
Paris - Socialist
Montreal - Socialist
Boston, New York City, Washington DC - American
While citizens get ripped off royally in the socialist countries for at best, decent services (like in France and Canada), America is rich enough to have fairly low taxes and still have enough funds for a fair public transportation system. Privatize, and your taxes lower even more and you get much better service.