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Nothing happens in a vaccum. In the end, I think a lot of it comes back to staff.
First, there should be a running storyline that staff works on, and keeps moving. Think of this as a stone thrown into a pond. What's supposed to happen from there is a series of ripples.
How do you make sure that get these ripples? When players come up with an idea, support them. Be willing to build for them, to run an npc or an avatar and react to what they are doing, let the player-led plot affect the game world, write it in and respond to it.
Before I began mudding I played a graphical game that was in theory rp intensive. The prevailant opinion from the staff was, don't wait for us, make your own fun... "but don't actually do anything." That doesn't work. You either have to be willing to step back and let your players run and support them, or you need to do more work, and constantly give them things to do, and write all the storylines.
The other side of this coin is with the freedom to affect the game world, players have the responsibility to do more of the work. Often a player will have a plot idea and bring it to the staff, asking them to make their story happen. So, when a player comes to you and says, "Oooh, let's overthrow the government," instead of a yes or no answer, a better idea is to say "How?" "How much does it cost?" "Have you recruited help?" "When are you overthrowing the government?" Not every plan has to succeed.
In summary, if you want your players to run plots you have to actually let them.
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