Public–Private Partnerships: Infrastructure, Transportation and Local Services

Abstract

Public–private partnerships (PPPs) are arrangements between government and private actors with the objective of providing public infrastructure, facilities and services. Three fundamental questions frame the use of PPPs at the local level: What do PPPs look like? What gives rise to the use of PPPs? And, what are the outcomes of PPPs? The articles in this symposium provide insightful answers to these questions. In addition, the symposium contributions identify lines of research that invite further investigation, namely: problems related to the degree of risk transfer; the challenges posed by renegotiation; and evaluation of PPPs’ results.

Key Words:

• Local government
• public–private partnerships
• privatisation
• contracting out