Competition is about quality. Transit service providers compete in terms of quality of service to customers. Customers trade off the costs of transportation alternatives with the performance measures most important to them in terms of quality. These may be convenience, comfort, time spent, amenities, lifestyle preferences, and many other considerations. ATSC believes that the public benefits from competition in a mix of public and private provision of transit services.
Competition helps use fare box, local, state, and federal funds efficiently.
The benefits of competition can be achieved through the competitive contracting of specific transit operations, such as fleet maintenance, or contracting with a private transit system operator for particular transit services, such as school busing, commuter transit, or selected feeder routes in a broader transportation network. Competitive contracting is not privatization. It is not about creating public or private monopolies or holding communities captive. It is about flexibility, about alternatives to provide the best service at the best price. It is about partnerships to provide the customer with choices.