Contracting out public services often leads to higher costs and worse quality of service. A public inquiry into the Ottawa LRT after two derailments found that the line was rushed into service due to financial pressures. Some of the same companies who maintain the Ottawa LRT have a 30-year maintenance contract for the Crosstown LRT in Toronto, which is a public-private partnership. Private garbage collection contracts cost Toronto more money than public collection contracts by 2021 and private garbage collection services recycled less.
In 2020, the provincial government asked the TTC to determine "the feasibility of implementing microtransit options" in order to receive emergency pandemic transit operating funding. In 2018, City Council voted to support keeping ownership of the TTC in the City of Toronto's hands after the provincial government announced a plan to “upload” the TTC subway.