[Willie Green]

In practice, they are actually a very bad idea.
In most cases it's actually a corrupt, financing swindle, where political cronies are granted a 75-year-monopoly to collect private tolls on a highwary that was already built with public money. The cronies pay an up-front fee, of course, to make it look like the taxpayers are getting a good deal. But the truth is, the taxpayers would be better off if the government simply collected all the tolls itself, and prevented the crony companies from skimming all the action.

[Onelifetogive]

political cronies

I think we are in agreement that politicians are capable of destroying ANY good idea.