Private affluence, public squalor
This was the line coined by John K Galbraith, and it is undoubtedly true that today people will not put up with this. People want their creature comforts: if you go into a major supermarket it is immaculate and well presented, so the same expectations hold elsewhere.
I criticised BAA recently on this blog for squalid conditions at Heathrow. They did write to me to their credit. Yes, there are huge pressures, but there is no excuse for filthy carpeting on the top the luggage carousels, or Customs signs that are very grubby too.
By contrast I went to the Passport Office in Victoria this morning. Despite being hugely busy, the staff were efficient and helpful, and the whole process was made as agreeable as possible. What a contrast.