Except fiber cables are not at all like roads, in that you can run dozens side by side in less space than a single water pipe.<p>And for the same reason, the companies vs government dichotomy is invalid here as well. Even if we want to provide a public service to avoid private monopolization, there&#x27;s absolutely no reason to forbid private companies from competing with it.<p>After all, if the problem is that private companies are greedy, a public ISP funded only by their customers&#x27; fees and without profit-seeking shareholders should solve the problem within a system of fair competition.