As New York’s “congestion pricing” inner-city tolling plan takes impact Sunday, certainly one of its main proponents is questioning whether or not the timing is true for a coverage meant to drive individuals to an more and more harmful mass transit system.
By means of a spokesman, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo confirmed that he nonetheless backs the system that now tolls drivers $9 to cross beneath Central Park or enter Decrease Manhattan from Brooklyn and New Jersey – however questioned whether or not now’s finest to implement it.
“Governor Cuomo believes congestion pricing is ultimately the right policy, which is why he fought and succeeded in passing it after more than a decade of failed attempts,” longtime spokesman Wealthy Azzopardi informed Fox Information Digital on Friday.
Azzopardi mentioned that Cuomo’s unique plan, which discovered settlement from then-Mayor Invoice de Blasio, was primarily based on a “safe and reliable subway system” and a thriving metropolis core. Prior Mayor Michael Bloomberg had proposed an identical plan in 2007, but it surely died in Albany.
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“[G]iven the obvious lack of confidence the public currently has in the subway system – combined with the tenuous state of New York City post-COVID, [Cuomo] called for a data-driven study on the impact of congestion pricing to inform the timing of such a major policy change and to ensure New York was not creating additional obstacles to its comeback.”
Cuomo beforehand wrote in a March op-ed that congestion pricing’s success hinges on confidence within the MTA and mass transit, which he famous has additionally statistically nonetheless not recovered from COVID ranges.
He famous how congestion pricing is supposed to “incentivize” subway use – however that that’s onerous to do when persons are getting brutally attacked underground – and famous that it was his father, Gov. Mario Cuomo, who first beefed-up police presence after the “bad old days.”
On the time of a previous column within the Submit, Cuomo cited a conductor with 24 years of service to the MTA vowing by no means to return underground after he was slashed within the neck and required 34 stitches whereas working an A prepare in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.
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MTA Chairman Janno Lieber and Gov. Hochul (Getty)
Extra not too long ago, an Ocean County, N.J., girl was burned alive in Coney Island, and there have been a number of near-fatal circumstances of individuals being randomly shoved in entrance of trains, occurring from Morningside Heights to TriBeCa, since Christmas.
“It is undeniable that New York is in a dramatically different place today than it was in 2019, and without a study forecasting its consequences based on facts, not politics, it could do more harm than good to New York City’s recovery,” Cuomo’s spokesman mentioned Friday.
However Cuomo’s onetime deputy, Gov. Kathy Hochul, appeared full-steam-ahead in enacting the coverage, which is meant to drive commuters and residents to think about mass transit to move to work or play in Midtown.
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In a current assertion lauding her present plan, Hochul’s workplace mentioned the discount of the congestion toll from its unique $15 will save drivers $1,500 per 12 months, and that commuters will see “new and improved subway services.”
“By getting congestion pricing underway and fully supporting the MTA capital plan, we’ll unclog our streets, reduce pollution and deliver better public transit for millions of New Yorkers,” Hochul mentioned.
MTA Chairman Janno Lieber, who oversees the state-run metro subway, bus and rail community, mentioned that Hochul is “stepping up” for individuals who need cleaner air, safer streets and fewer gridlock.
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The FDR Drive on Manhattan’s East Aspect; certainly one of few roadways exempt from tolling. (Getty)
He additionally famous that upgrades have already taken place on the 7 subway from Instances Sq. to Flushing, Queens, and the L prepare from Union Sq. to Canarsie.
Nevertheless, Cuomo’s camp maintains that it was he who envisioned and oversaw the upgrades to New York’s transit community with out the added tolls in impact – and ripped Hochul and Lieber for claiming that he had gotten chilly toes.
When the New York Submit requested Hochul for touch upon Cuomo suggesting she “hit the brakes” on congestion pricing, the governor directed remark to a Lieber spokesman, who blasted Cuomo for “flip-flopping.”
“What would really harm New York’s continuing recovery is starving subways of a desperately needed source of funding after decades of underinvestment,” the MTA’s Aaron Donovan mentioned.
“The $15 fee was passed by the MTA under Hochul’s watch, but please gaslight away,” Azzopardi informed Fox Information Digital. “New Yorkers aren’t stupid.”
Cuomo beforehand informed WNYW that individuals have the choice to make money working from home, which they didn’t have when he first pushed the plan in 2019 – and that if he had been a commuter, he would seemingly balk on the concept of added prices at a time of “high crime and homelessness.”
Cuomo’s camp additionally mentioned that Hochul likes to take credit score for the achievements of his three-term administration that presaged the brand new tolls.
“The difference here is that Governor Cuomo built the [new Amtrak/MetroNorth] Moynihan Train Hall and the Second Avenue Subway [extension to East Harlem], as well as fixed the L train and did the hard work to get [Grand Central’s] East Side Access and the LIRR Third-Track done. All Hochul wanted to do was cut the ribbons,” Azzopardi mentioned.
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Cuomo’s requires a pause had been joined by a number of New York Republicans, but the previous governor and potential 2025 mayoral candidate stays supportive of congestion pricing, whereas the GOP needs it nixed fully.
Commuters from New Jersey should nonetheless pay Port Authority tolls to cross the Hudson River, and outer-borough commuters the identical by way of the East River – albeit with a slight credit score towards their “congestion” charge.
Drivers who stay on the FDR Drive or Joe DiMaggio West Aspect Freeway won’t be charged until they flip onto floor streets.
