Debate : 12491


Off-Topic / Debate / 12491	12490 \| 12492

Subject:	Re: UK devolved government. (was Re: Harry Potter getting left out)
Newsgroups:	lugnet.off-topic.debate
Date:	Sun, 9 Sep 2001 22:43:18 GMT
Viewed:	1122 times

In lugnet.off-topic.debate, Lindsay Frederick Braun writes: > > Everyone's said that. Virtually every commentator I have seen, You need to read a bit more widely, perhaps. And does the fact that "everyone says so" make something actually "so" ?? > British or not, has stated that privatization of systems crucial > to the functioning of the state--in effect, the reversal of the > Attlee centralization and beyond--will spell disaster in terms > of reliability if not finance (although the evidence for both is > pretty good). One only need look at Railtrack's dismal record > of maintenance and response; it took *how* many days to get things > up and running after last fall's weather fiasco? In what way is Railtrack an example of privatization? There's still one company controlling *all* the track that is just as hobbled as ever, if not more so than BR was, it just supposedly has private owners... I dunno about you, but I'd much rather own shares in the operating companies, which do compete against each other after a fashion, than in the big ugly monopoly that owns all the track and has no incentive to do anything well. Take a look at the cockamamie incentives in place. The original operating companies AND their track should have been restored in some semblance so that there are competitive lines, with the operating companies owning the infrastructure. Just like Conrail was carved back up into essentially its two major constituents by NS and CSX. > Britrail always > had enough people to do the job quickly, rather than compete with > other, richer firms for limited private-sector resources. At what cost?

Message has 1 Reply:

		British railway industry (was Re: UK devolved government (was Harry Potter but who remembers that?)
(...) Well that's what it the Government called it at the time! A state owned business was split up and the parts were either sold, floated or transferred under franchises. Of course you are right that Railtrack is a monopoly but it's still (...) (23 years ago, 10-Sep-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)

Message is in Reply To:

		Re: UK devolved government. (was Re: Harry Potter getting left out)
(...) No, actually, that's probably not as much detail as I could withstand. :D I read pretty closely on the matter when I was living in Hornsey and in Acton, especially after Kiley got involved because I use Boston's and New York's systems quite (...) (23 years ago, 9-Sep-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)

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