[CamperBob2]

Can I patronize another MTA -- or start one - if I don't like the policies of this one?

No?

Then they're either state employees, or private actors wearing the colors of state authority. Which one of those is true is not interesting or relevant.

[vonmoltke]

So, an electric utility in a state where such are regulated is a state agency then?

[CamperBob2]

If it behaves the way the MTA is behaving, what difference does it make? That's the point that people taking your side of this question keep ignoring.

As we've seen with PG&E's behavior on the other side of the country, these entities are treated like official state agencies whenever they find it convenient to be treated that way, and like private businesses when that's more convenient.

It is not in the riders' interest -- or the taxpayer's -- for anyone to be allowed to dictate who can publish maps of a publicly-funded transit system. Whether the MTA is called a "public-private partnership," a "utility," a "transit authority," a "public benefit corporation," or simply a "government agency" is, again, not the least bit relevant.