Wednesday, August 10, 2022

Congestion pricing tax trolls reveal the tolls

https://thecity.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0288aec/2147483647/strip/true/crop/832x603+0+0/resize/832x603!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fthumbor%2FtlipBaAPjZ-8ZgKw8MzKo7jLPYc%3D%2F0x0%3A832x603%2F832x603%2Ffilters%3Afocal%28416x302%3A417x303%29%2Fcdn.vox-cdn.com%2Fuploads%2Fchorus_asset%2Ffile%2F23933619%2FCongestion_Pricing_Chart.png 

THE CITY

The years-long effort to toll vehicles in the most congested parts of Manhattan as a way to bankroll billions of dollars in mass-transit improvements and reduce traffic is no longer stuck in neutral.

Today officials released the long-delayed “environmental assessment” of the proposed Central Business District Tolling Program — touting how it could potentially cut congestion coming into the core of Manhattan by nearly 20%, improve air quality, boost bus service reliability and increase mass transit usage.

The document also outlined what the program may cost drivers entering the toll zone: between $5 and $23 per trip, depending on the time of day and the type of vehicle.

The shift would change truck traffic in Manhattan, in particular; the report estimates truck trips through the central district would drop between 55% and 81% as drivers opt for less expensive routes. But it acknowledged that tolls could increase the number of drivers diverting onto roads in the South Bronx and on Staten Island.

Initially approved in 2019 by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state legislature, the rollout of so-called congestion pricing has been repeatedly hampered by federal bureaucracy, including hundreds of highly detailed questions from the feds that pushed back the projected launch date.

New York’s system would be the first time tolls would be used in the United States to reduce traffic-related emissions.

But the program that aims to fund $15 billion of subway, bus and commuter rail improvements as part of the MTA’s 2020 to 2024 Capital Plan now appears to be on track, with virtual public hearings set for later this month.

“Bottom line: this is good for the environment, good for public transit and good for New York and the region,” Janno Lieber, MTA chairperson and CEO, said in a statement.

THE CITY 

In August, the transit agency will hold a series of six public hearings to take public comment on the assessment. They will be held on the following dates. THE CITY will update this piece when more information is made available on how and where to submit testimony:

  • Thursday, Aug. 25, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. 
  • Saturday, Aug. 27, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. 
  • Sunday, Aug. 28, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Monday, Aug. 29, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. 
  • Tuesday, Aug. 30, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. 
  • Wednesday, Aug. 31, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The work of making the final determinations about toll amounts and system functionality will be done by the Traffic Mobility Review Board, or TMRB, made up of six people — five appointees from the MTA and one from the mayor. The transit agency and Mayor Eric Adams appointed all TMRB members this summer. They are:

  • Carl Weisbrod, former chair of the City Planning Commission and former director of the Department of City Planning.
  • John Banks, president emeritus of the Real Estate Board of New York.
  • Scott Rechler, chair of the Regional Plan Association and former CEO of the real estate group RXR.
  • Elizabeth Velez, president of the construction management firm the Velez Organization.
  • Kathryn Wylde, president and CEO of the Partnership for New York City.
  • John Samuelsen, president of the Transport Workers Union (TWU) and former president of TWU Local 100 in New York.

Adams appointed Samuelsen, and the rest were appointed by the MTA. Weisbrod will serve as chair of the review board.

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

The War on the Middle Class continues...

Anonymous said...

Wonder how much money this will take from poor POC family's and the new Illegal's from Texas ?

Anonymous said...

NYC is completely broken sad very sad...

NPC_translator said...

Totally stupid.

Anonymous said...

Is this part of the "New Green Deal" ?
Asking for a TA Bike Commie...

Anonymous said...

Come back and pay up! No thanks....

Anonymous said...

Dem0rAts make everything more expensive.
Prove Me Right...

Anonymous said...

Great news for normal people.

Disgruntled Citizen said...

Are these people crazy?

Anonymous said...

Oh boy! There’s going to be lots of angry Trumpanzees out there when this gets enforced.

Anonymous said...

1776 said...
What is Swaggers postion on the unfair MTA regressive tax ? Crickets...
Regressive taxes like this one place more burden on lower-income earners.
Adams has a nice collection of suits. But all of them are empty.

Anonymous said...

I'm sure the Q-Anon creep is going to be furious when he/she/it reads this. There'll be sounds of furious keyboard bashing from a trailer in some mosquito infested Florida swamp.
Prove me wrong ...

Anonymous said...

Yeah and then you know what will happen to our packages that come in from other states? They will charge us some kind of "surcharge" for packages that have to cross into nyc. Get ready to pay more overall even if you dont travel to the city. And taxi fares will definitely go up as well and so will uber and lyft. Get ready to pay more whether you are actually driving or not.

Anonymous said...

Everyone in this city voted for the democratic politicians that enacted this so there shouldn't be any complaints.

Anonymous said...

MAGA3X said...
"A government with the power to give you everything you want, is a government with the power to take away everything you have."

Anonymous said...

Brandon said...
There is 0% Inflation...

Anonymous said...

Scenario seven is he only reasonable one which takes account the original intent of the federal law. The other plans penalize drivers. There should be congestion pricing on mass transit as well so employers may learn to stagger hours to reduce congestion.

Anonymous said...

The mayor and city leaders are constantly talking about how important it is to get people back into Manhattan - so why are they making it even more absurdly expensive and unaffordable for people to return?

Anonymous said...

The middle class aren't dumb enough to drive into Manhattan. Or are they ???

Anonymous said...

@Oh boy! There’s going to be lots of angry Trumpanzees out there when this gets enforced.

Seems the Biorobot is angry. There is AI for you. Needs a patch.

Anonymous said...

@I'm sure the Q-Anon creep is going to be furious when he/she/it reads this.

You $100K donor is going to be angry? Don't blame him/her, he/she could do a lot better
than you Fentanyl boy.

Anonymous said...

Is called "Wealth Transfer".
Communist dictators in Banana Republic+s do these type of transfers.
Only supporters they have is dumb asses like TA commie here, but even they are bought.
Ask TA Commie and his q-anon donors.

Anonymous said...

This has been taking much too long. Still waiting for Citi bike in Maspeth. Anyways, it seems silly.
Much easier to toll all the river crossings. $25 for the queensboro and $35 for the there Brooklyn bridges + the battery. Free for the Hudson River to encourage more people to move their fat asses and cars to Jerseys.

Anonymous said...

I have a neighbor who sends his daughter to college in Manhattan via Uber both ways. Cost about 14K per year. He gave up his METS seasonal tickets to do so. After she finishes, it's North Carolina for the family. New York is dead.

Anonymous said...

Q-Anon troll probably doesn’t even drive. Wonder why it’s so upset about this congestion toll?

Anonymous said...

In order for folks to believe it fair, crossing toll hikes should be revenue neutral, in other words, lower the high tolls by as much as you raise the nontolls to make all tolls equal. I know people who got killed trying to take the no-toll route.

Anonymous said...


Q-Anon troll probably doesn’t even drive

He is a bike freak like you TA Commie.

Anonymous said...

so employers may learn to stagger hours to reduce congestion.

This is such a brilliant and obvious idea, it's astounding no one ever suggests it.

Anonymous said...

These TA people have lost their dam minds.

Anonymous said...

How about a nice class action lawsuit for theft of services, stealing money and so on?
Car registration already includes $30 fee for road use.
While we are at it, let's fuck them up with the cameras too.
Totally illegal.

Anonymous said...

So $30 covers road usage , air pollution, road murders and free car Storage?
Joe Biden is right, 0 inflation.

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