Results tagged “tolls”

Former MTA chairman and current Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch declared yesterday that East River tolls will come back to haunt us for eternity! The Daily News reports that he told an NYU graduate school class that "User fees will come back and back, and they will happen." The tolls were part of his solution to solve to the MTA's financial crisis; "the so-called Ravitch plan included tolling the East and Harlem River bridges to avert sky-high fare hikes and Draconian service cuts while paying for critical projects."

Various reports say that State Senate Democrats are dropping the plan to toll East River and Harlem River bridge crossings, which has split their party. The Daily News reports that they "are expected to unveil a watered-down MTA bailout that would keep the city's bridges free but leave less money for transit, sources said Monday night." The NY Times calls the new proposal a "short-term alternative" that still leaves unanswered questions for the MTA.

So much for the State Legislature moving forward on a plan to introduce $2 tolls on currently free East River and Harlem River bridges—opposition from State Senators (from even within his own Democratic party as well as other Democratic state and city officials) has forced State Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith's hand into delaying any sort of decision by demanding an audit of the MTA's finances. Wait, there was no audit of the MTA's finances before a deal would be made?

With Governor Paterson and the State Legislature working on a deal to help the MTA's finances—by way of introducgin $2 tolls on the East River and Harlem River bridges—lawmakers who oppose the plan have been speaking out. Yesterday, City Comptroller William Thompson and other lawmakers, such as Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat and City Council members John Liu and Robert Jackson, held a press conference to counter the bridge-toll plan.

NY State Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith voiced his support for $2 tolls on East River and Harlem River bridges, a proposal from Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. However Smith did add, "If reducing the proposed East River Bridges toll results in higher fare increases, fewer service add-ons and layoffs, then it may not achieve the intended goals any toll would have to meet for it to be a prudent option."

With the MTA's finances in desperate, dire shape, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has "proposed a compromise on Wednesday that endorses putting tolls on the bridges over the East River and the Harlem River," the NY Times reports. The idea to toll the currently free bridges came up last November, but opposition from drivers has been fierce. Silver offered a compromise to charge $2 tolls to drivers—which is what subway and bus riders pay—and said, Obviously there are some who don’t like the toll. And I put that in the juxtaposition of, ‘Look, this is the only game in town.’” But Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Queens) told the TImes, “Tolling the bridges is just not acceptable to me. Once you cross the Rubicon on tolling bridges the future conversation is merely, ‘How much is the periodic increase going to be?’"

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.

Ravitch Commission Chairman Richard Ravitch did not hold back in responding to critics who immediately came out griping against some of the suggestions to fix the MTA's code red budget in Thursday's report. He told the Daily News, "Obviously, I have to assume they must know of some secret fairy godmother who has piles of money she is going to send and solve the problem. Otherwise, they'd better damn well explain how the system is going to be paid for." The Ravitch Commision's report had immediately drawn criticism from those in the outer boroughs who felt that putting tolls on all bridges coming into Manhattan put an unfair burden on them. Ravitch stands behind the plan that he says will hit drivers, transit riders and employers equally.

Yesterday, the Ravitch Commission released its recommendations for closing the MTA's budget gap. You can read the report here (PDF) or take a look at the highlights, which include: An 8% bus, subway and commuter train fare hike; adding tolls to the now-free Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Williamsburg Bridges as well as the Harlem RIver bridges (no toll booths, just EZ Pass or bills sent to drivers); and a "mobility tax" for employers in 12 counties "equal to one-third of one percent of wages ($330 per each $100,000 in payroll)," according to the Daily News.

After much speculation and the local papers preparing commuters for what was to come, the MTA made their official budget proposal today and as expected, the cutbacks were dramatic. In addition to the slashing of the W and the Z lines among other cuts listed Tuesday, today's 2009 budget also included the following:

Last week, WCBS 2 first mentioned that the MTA might consider adding tolls to the free East River bridges--the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg and 59th Street--as a way to raise much-needed revenue. Now, Governor Paterson confirmed to the news station, "I think that very accurately we may have to look at tolls on the bridges right in the city... The MTA itself which has a deficit, a debt, which is higher than 46 states, now has an $11-14 billion deficit, so I'm not surprised that they're suggesting drastic remedies." Projected revenue, if the bridges were to be tolled, could be $1 billion...that is, if people, who are freaked out by the prospect, keep driving. And the MTA might also have to sock it to subway and bus riders, by raising the base fare (this week's speculation: up to $3 to close the budget gap!).

Some more details about rumors that the MTA is considering tolls for the Brooklyn, Manhattan, 59th Street and Williamsburg Bridges. Apparently this proposal will be included in the Ravtich Commission's recommendation for ways for the MTA to raise revenue. Governor Paterson convened the commission after countless warnings from the agency about its dire financial situation.

Just because congestion pricing didn't pass doesn't mean that tolls aren't possible on East River crossings: WCBS 2 reports that the MTA is considering tolling all Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg, and 59th Street Bridges in order to deal with its huge budget gaps. Transportation engineer Sam Schwartz points out, "We already have tolls at the Battery Tunnel, Midtown Tunnel, the Triborough Bridge let's put pricing on all of the crossings in between... People coming into the city should be paying for some of the service they get." Tolling the four bridges might raise $1 billion; another possibilitiy is "to have tolls only during morning and evening rush hours." And about congestion pricing...given the city's financial picture, "A top transit source told CBS 2 HD the mayor's full congestion pricing plan is also back on the table. " Snap!

Anyone who has ever been scraping for quarters out of the armrest storage console as a line of toll booths approaches has probably wondered just what would happen if you went through an E-Z pass lane despite not having one of the scannable tags on your windshield. Well, if you ever went through with it, you'd be just 1,086 illegal trips through an E-Z Pass lane behind Catherine Cappelluti. Records show the Weehawken resident owes the Port Authority $32,879 in unpaid tolls from taking advantage of the unmanned lanes. She received 361 citations between 1998 and 2004. Her excuse? She claims her boyfriend did it. The Port Authority lost $14 million last year in unpaid tolls.

As the MTA looks for any possible source of revenue, it has made a bold suggestion: The agency wants city departments to pay tolls over MTA bridge and tunnel crossings. As WCBS 2 puts it, that includes "firefighters and police responding to emergencies or calls to service." Currently, those city departments are using about 11,000 free E-ZPass tags, so if the MTA gets its way, then the city would need to pay for the approximate 300,000 crossings each year. (The MTA also emphasizes it wouldn't stop responders heading to a scene.) A spokesman for Mayor Bloomberg called it "an underhanded attempt to increase the city's already large subsidy of the MTA by charging the city for responding to emergencies or performing other essential services." Uh, the city's subsidy to the MTA hasn't really changed since 1990, according to the IBO.

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.

"Uncompensated" MTA board members are not the only ones benefiting from a policy of free E-ZPasses. As the board found it necessary to pass toll and fare hikes to regular commuters, it made sure that not only were they insulated from the cost of traveling around NYC, but their wives were as well. One member even gave his girlfriend an all-inclusive Metro-North rail pass. The value of these perks is in the thousands of dollars annually for each individual.