One interesting thing I found out about Hong Kong, was that a good chunk of it’s transit system is run by MTR Corporation LTD which is quite profitable. It’s set to merge with another Hong Kong based rail operator which also makes money. As far as I know, it’s one of a number of reasonably solvent transit operators in Asia.

“At the time of the initial public offering, the company was operating with a budget surplus of HK$360 million, which had increased from a surplus of HK$278 million in 1997. However, after the IPO profits decreased as the company lost much of its subsidies (mainly development rights of lands) from the government, dropping to HK$139 million. Yet, this trend seems to have reversed, as profits grew more than tenfold in the fourth quarter of 2004, making it one of the few profitable public transport systems in the world.”

What’s even more interesting is that the company makes a lot of it’s money by developing properties along it’s transit lines since the existence of the line allows a much more intensive and profitable use of nearby land.