Replies to georgeberberian's Comments

First of all, most New Yorkers do not commute via automobile into the Manhattan Central Business District. The vast majority use public transportation, walk and bike. New Yorkers have a lot to gain from increased revenue for mass transportation improvements and reduced congestion.

Residents of the communities surrounding the free bridges and feeder roads/highways suffer from excess pollution, noise, and collisions.

If you drive into the Manhattan CBD, you currently do so at the expense of others. Local residents pay a price far higher than what you would be expected to once these tolls are enacted if you continue your habits.

Congestion pricing has proven successful internationally.

Hello, georgeberberian, thank you for joining this discussion.

It sounds like you’re opposed to a new agency (MNYHTA) because you feel it’s unnecessary to create a new agency to oversee an existing agency (MTA)--because it’d be simpler to institute transparency measures on the existing agency.

Under the proposed bill, the MNYHTA would disburse funds—limited to specified transportation investments only (Topic 3.1)—to three different transportation agencies (MTA, TBTA, NYC-DOT, also Topic 3.1) and would be subject to transparency measures (for example, annual public reports on disbursements; see Topic 4.1).

What alternative would you offer to people who feel that creating the MNYHTA is efficient because those limitations and transparency measures would affect four agencies at once (MTA, TBTA, NYC-DOT, MNYHTA), through the creation of a single agency.

Most Manhattan CBD workers commute via mass transportation, even from the suburbs.It will take time to expand and improve mass transportation, but we need to start somewhere. Tolling automobile trips which enter the Manhattan CBD provides a new revenue source, one which could facilitate substantial projects.

The status quo does not work and is only going to get worse. The alternative is ever worsening commutes for everyone, increased travel times, pollution, road maintenance expenditure, and more collisions. The MoveNY plan is inevitable.

Actually, there's a substantial population surrounding commuter rail stations within NYC. Commuter rail in NYC should be priced equal to the subway and buses, with transfers included.I would propose that immediate funding for Select Bus Service supersede Express buses.

Thank you again for your comment, georgeberberian. The number of crossings can make this confusing, but the basic idea is to charge all vehicles that directly enter the congested area below 60th St. the same toll, no matter what route they use. You can see this by comparing this map of the current system (pg 10) with the proposed system (pg 18). The East River bridges are now the only free route that feeds directly into the congested area. Drivers who cross on any of the other bridges (including a Harlem bridge) will pay the new toll if they also cross 60th. St. By establishing new tolls on East River Bridges, the Plan will prevent the bridge-shopping.

This plan proposes to cordon the entirety of Manhattan south of 60th St. It doesn't matter where your trip originates, you will be charged if you enter that area from all directions. This includes new electronic, overhead transponders installed at all East River crossings and across 60th St from river to river.

Manhattan residents should be discouraged from automobile ownership. The borough is too densely populated to even support the current automotive volume. Manhattan residents also have excellent mass transportation options, considering our subway and metropolitan commuter rail system radiates out from Midtown.

If your friends must drive, they can either pay the toll. Alternatively, they can take mass transportation, a car share service, or bike.

You aren't being penalized for owning cars. The space those cars take up is heavily subsidized by the public. For comparison, a square foot of the Empire State Building gift shop costs over $830 a month, but an entire 250 sq ft parking spot a few feet away would be lucky to make the city $300 a month. Why does city land somehow become hundreds of times less important or valuable when you need to store your car?

Plenty of interests inside NYC believe in this plan (as do I). This isn't "another tax on New Yorkers." It's a first step toward making drivers pay for their own chosen method of transportation, instead of everyone else doing that for you (as we all do). You're operating on the assumption that roads don't have to be income-generating in the way that the MTA does. That's unfair, and *I'm* tired of paying higher consumer prices so *you* can sit in your car. If you don't like paying to drive, join the rest of us in other methods of transportation - you'll be more than welcome!

Thanks for your comment, georgeberberian. You raise a valid point--the proposed toll swap would impose an additional cost on drivers who use the East River bridges. Plan supporters, though, argue that the current toll system encourages "bridge shopping," which sends heavy traffic into residential areas not designed for the traffic.

If you're interested in revenue issues, you may also want to check out sub-topic 3, the section directly below.