St. John's Law Review Volume 83 Number 1 Volume 83, Winter 2009, Number 1 Article 5 Proceed with Caution: Avoiding Hazards in Toll Road Privatizations Celeste Pagano Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.stjohns.edu/lawreview This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at St. John's Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in St. John's Law Review by an authorized editor of St. John's Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. PROCEED WITH CAUTION: AVOIDING HAZARDS IN TOLL ROAD PRIVATIZATIONS CELESTE PAGANOt INTRODU CTION .............................................................................. 352 I.FREEWAYS, TOLL ROADS, AND ROAD PRIVATIZATION IN THE U NITED STATES ................................................................... 355 II.PRIVATIZATION: BACKGROUND AND DEBATE ............................ 361 A. The Trend Towards Privatization ............................... 361 B. Rationales for Privatization ......................................... 363 C. Best Cases for Privatization ........................................ 364 D. Potential Hazards of Privatization .............................. 366 1. The Problems of Conflicting Goals ......................... 366 2. Challenges to Democratic Accountability .............. 367 III.THE CASE OF PRIVATIZED TOLL ROADS: BENEFITS AND D RAW BACKS ......................................................................... 369 A. Tensions Inherent in Conflicting Goals .....................