Earlier today, mayoral hopeful Scott Stringer called for the return of a .45 percent commuter tax of those working in the city who live elsewhere. And immediately politicians whose constituents might be put off by such a tax (which Stringer says could generate $725 million a year) are coming out of the woodwork to slam the plan. Not that Stringer is taking it lying down. more ›

Over the past year, acclaimed traffic engineer Sam Schwartz has been pitching a form of congestion pricing that would lower the tolls on bridges uptown and charge cars traveling the Queensboro, Williamsburg, Manhattan, and Brooklyn bridges $7 ($5 with E-ZPass). The former traffic commissioner also wants to impose a surcharge on yellow and livery cabs heading over those bridges. This "congestion pricing" (or "Mucous Mulct," as we prefer to call it) would raise $1.2 billion annually. But part of that money would come from a 50-cent toll on cyclists crossing those bridges into Manhattan. more ›

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is considered one of the most powerful men in New York State, but even he doesn't have power over the conditions of the streets he bikes on. Capital New York's Azi Paybarah reports, "Half of Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's face is bruised and purple, and there are stitches over his left eyebrow and a scab across his nose and the back of one of his hands. Silver sustained the injuries while riding a bicycle when he hit a pothole and fell, according to a spokesman for the lower Manhattan Democrat." more ›

New York may like to complain about diplomats not paying their tickets, but it seems that the U.S. is guilty of doing it too! Not only does the U.S. embassy in London owe £5 million (around $8.5 million) in unpaid congestion pricing fees but this week the city of London added a symbolic £120 penalty to that total. The extra fee was levied against President Obama's high-security limo which, like the other cars in his motorcade, failed to pay the £10 charge to drive in the city center on a visit in May. The U.S. refrained from paying up even after the mayor of London asked Barack to pay in person! more ›

Back when congestion pricing was still on the table one, of the arguments for it was that it would reduce regular traffic and allow commercial traffic to move through town quicker. But is there a way to skip the first step and still reduce commercial traffic? Ars Technica points out one: food tubes. more ›

Another of Mayor Bloomberg's top aides, Deputy Mayor Ed Skyler, will abandon his post to pursue a career in the world of finance, City Hall sources say. The 36-year-old has served eight years, starting as press secretary, but beginning in May he'll be mostly concerned with "public affairs, government relations and investor relations" at Citigroup.The mayor confirmed the departure in a statement, saying Skyler was “Never afraid of telling me what he thinks.” more ›

Unless lawmakers can come up with new ways to fund the MTA, the transit agency might be forced to raise its base fare to $2.60 and increase the cost of unlimited monthly MetroCards to more than $100, according to a new study. The report reveals that even if the MTA implements far-reaching service cuts this year and ups fares by the planned 7.5 percent next year, it would still fall short of balancing its budget without additional funding. more ›

Even while haggling in Copenhagen, our politicians are still hard at work for us: case-in-point, Mayor Bloomberg did an interview with CNBC yesterday to discuss the MTA funding crisis, and alluded to the possible re-birth of his congestion pricing plan: more ›

In order for one of the most controversial suggestions of Thursday's Ravitch Commission report--tolls at all of the now-free East River crossings--to become a reality, it appears right there may be too many political tolls for them to become a reality. more ›

The group Transportation Alternatives has released a report titled “The Blueprint for the Upper West Side: A Roadmap for Truly Livable Streets,” their first neighborhood-wide plan to dramatically transform an area within the city into a more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly environment. (It's available for download here.) The plan would have the greatest impact along Broadway, which the TA suggests cutting the space available to automobiles from six lanes to four, giving cyclists a lane in each direction, blocked off with obstacles like leafy planters. more ›

Last week the Department of Transportation began a pilot program that had been in the works that is "congestion pricing for parking" of sorts, doubling the rates on meters in the West Village. From noon until 4, meters now cost $2 an hour in what the DOT hopes will free up spaces and cut down on double-parking by creating greater turnover for the area's highly coveted street parking spaces. Vehicles in the West Village tend to camp out because the DOT rarely enforces the 1 or 2 hour limits that cars are supposed to leave within. Residents and business owners in the area think that with the price to park on the street still costing so much less than local garages, little will change other than the higher amount of revenue coming into the city. Phil Mortillaro the owner of Greenwich Locksmiths lamented the Times, “It would have been better to run the trial at night when this place is full of tourists, not just during the day.” more ›

At a hearing about how the MTA could address its budget problems, some old and new ideas were tossed around. One notable suggestion, from former city transportation commissioner Luicius Riccio, was, per the NY Sun, "that the city should consider selling the Williamsburg and Manhattan bridges for $1 to the MTA, which could then charge tolls on commuters and use the revenue to finance mass transit improvements." Theodore Kheel, of Nurture New York's Nature (and good friend of Charles Rangel), also suggested some components of congestion pricing and reiterated his call to make the subways free. The Ravitch Commission, convened by Governor Paterson, will reportedly look at all the ideas--including "congestion pricing lite"--and will issue a report later this year about the state's growing transportation issues. Two more hearings will be held this month. more ›

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Mayor Bloomberg’s ambitious congestion pricing plan may be toast (or Governor Paterson may bring it back from the dead) but it seems that skyrocketing gas prices are succeeded where Hizzoner failed. The Times is reporting that traffic on the city’s bridges and tunnels dropped 4.7 percent in June, compared to the same time last year. Meanwhile, subway, bus, bicycle and commuter rail ridership has surged. A transportaion consultant predicts that “if we start eclipsing $5 a gallon, which we might over the summer, I think we might get very close,” to reducing traffic in Manhattan by 6.3 percent, which was the goal for Bloomberg’s congestion pricing plan. Go peak oil! more ›

Even though Mayor Bloomberg doesn't belong to a political party, he has confirmed he will help NY State Republicans face re-election this year. Why? It boils down to his pet failed project, congestion pricing. more ›

Gerritsen Beach posted this photograph of $4-and-over gasoline in Sheepshead Bay and asked, "Is this hell?" Well, for those drivers who could afford to fill up and head out of town this Memorial weekend, it might be heaven--the Daily News has two photos showing the contrast in traffic between this year's and last year's automobile rush on the Sunrise Highway. more ›

New data supports what everyone's been thinking: Ridership for the subway--and almost every other mass transit option--is up versus last year. So far, subway ridership is up almost 5% for the first three months of 2008 versus same period last year, and bus ridership is up 1.1%. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg didn't appear in public after Assembly Leader Sheldon put a nail in congestion pricing's coffin. But Bloomberg did issue an angry press release. The full text is after the jump (and he does thank many politicians who helped), but here's where he lets loose, after noting that while Washington D.C. was willing to give NYC $354 in federal funding, the State Assembly lacked leadership and courage in accepting new ideas:

"If that wasn't shameful enough, it takes a special type of cowardice for elected officials to refuse to stand up and vote their conscience- on an issue that has been debated, and amended significantly to resolve many outstanding issues, for more than a year. Every New Yorker has a right to know if the person they send to Albany was for or against better transit and cleaner air. People know where I stood, and where members of the City Council stood. They deserved at least that from Albany."

Assembly Leader Sheldon Silver announced the State Assembly is rejecting congestion pricing. The controversial plan, a pet project of Mayor Bloomberg's, was approved by the City Council last week and had support from Governor David Paterson and State Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, making the Assembly's support the final, critical step to ensure $354 million in federal funds (which would have been directed towards the MTA's projects). more ›

The fate of the controversial plan to charge drivers entering Manhattan below 60th Street lies with Albany, as state legislators must decide whether to approve the plan by midnight tonight. But Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said last night, "There isn't a groundswell of support for it" among other Assembly members. But most papers are saying the plan is effectively dead. more ›

State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has kept a relatively low profile over the past several months, as Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno battled with Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who would go on to self-destruct in a highly public style. With Mayor Bloomberg's beloved congestion pricing plan past the City Council hurdle and with the support of our new Gov. Paterson, it now lays stalled in the Assembly, where whatever Silver says pretty much goes. more ›

Democratic lawmakers in Albany seem poised to block Mayor Bloomberg’s congestion pricing plan, which attempts to reduce traffic by charging drivers $8 to enter Manhattan below 60th Street during peak hours. Though the plan was approved by the City Council on Monday, a “lively, sometimes emotional” meeting between state lawmakers yesterday ran over three and a half hours, and approximately 30 of them expressed opposition to the plan, with only four or five in favor. more ›

Streetsblog has this terrific map (created by the Pratt Center for Community Development) illustrating the City Council's votes for and against congestion pricing, and laid NYC highways, subways, and commuter rail options over it. more ›

NJ Governor Jon Corzine spoke out against NYC's congestion pricing plan, citing the Port Authority's proposed $1 billion worth of involvement to sweeten the deal. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg was beaming when he, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and other City Council members gathered for a press conference to hail the Council's approval of congestion pricing last night, 30 votes in favor to 20 against. Bloomberg, who introduced the idea of charging drivers entering Manhattan (at 60th street or below) a fee, said, "The sun is shining on New York City's future today." more ›