"Personal Responsibility Underground"

The New York subway is (slowly) decentralizing and The New York Times editorial board is *gasp* in favor of a potential new system where "subway managers will compete to see which line is cleanest, most efficient and all-round best":

Over the last few decades New York City's huge subway has become too centralized into a "large, unwieldy system." The management is one big stovepipe — that is, everybody works for a few people at the top. For example, one person is now in charge of all 468 subway stations across the entire New York City area. So, when it takes more than two years for workers to mend a leak that creates dangerous, icy steps, nobody really gets blamed for it. If it works right,… subway riders will soon have a real live person to blame.

More on the New York subway here.