Historical Accident, or Purposeful Intent?

Has anyone ever wondered why some things are tied to businesses, and others are left in the hands of individuals or government?

In Illinois, we're going through the periodic public transportation crisis, with threats of route shutdowns and service truncation. The agencies need more money from the government, and they need it now.

At the same time, like everyone else, we're reaching a crisis point in health care, with 15% of the population uninsured and many more under-insured. There's even talk of a national health care plan, in addition to the bizarrely populist plans advanced by the governor of Illinois (to be financed by magic).

But health care is tied to business. Ever tried to buy health insurance without a job? Expect to pay a lot and be covered a little.

Transportation, on the other hand, is not. Though one would think that employees being able to get to their jobs is at least as valuable as their health, business seems to have nothing to contribute (other than, in a very small number of cases, a pre-tax train pass program).

I understand that business took on health care as a benefit to attract employees, and that it was convenient to house it there due to risk pooling (even though this doesn't make as much sense for small business), but why is that so diametrically opposed to their interest in transportation issues? They seem very similar, so is this just a historical accident?