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As New York City’s “congestion pricing” inner-city pricing plan takes effect Sunday, one of its key proponents says the timing is right for a policy aimed at steering people onto increasingly dangerous mass transit. I doubt that.
Former Governor Andrew Cuomo, through a spokesperson, said he still supports the system, which currently imposes a $9 toll on drivers to cross under Central Park or enter Lower Manhattan from Brooklyn or New Jersey. he acknowledged, but questioned whether it was best to introduce it now.
“Governor Cuomo believes that congestion pricing is ultimately the right policy, which is why he fought and succeeded in passing an attempt that had failed for more than a decade,” said the longtime press secretary. Rich Azzopardi told FOX News Digital on Friday.
Azzopardi said Cuomo’s original plan, which was agreed to by then-Mayor Bill de Blasio, was based on a “safe and reliable subway system” and thriving city centers. Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed a similar plan in 2007, but the proposal died in Albany.
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”[G]Given the public’s current apparent distrust of the subway system and the precarious situation in New York City post-COVID-19; [Cuomo] We called for a data-driven study of the impact of congestion pricing to inform the timing of such a major policy change and to ensure it does not create new obstacles to New York City’s recovery. ”
Cuomo previously noted in a March op-ed that the success of congestion pricing depends on trust in the MTA and public transit, which statistically has still not recovered from coronavirus levels.
He pointed out how congestion pricing was intended to “incentivize” subway use, saying it was difficult to do that when people were being brutally attacked on the subway, and , pointed out that her father, Gov. Mario Cuomo, was the first to strengthen subway use. “The good old days.”
In an earlier column for the Post, Mr. Cuomo said that a conductor who had worked for the MTA for 24 years would never go underground again after he cut himself in the neck and required 34 stitches while operating an A train in Bedford-Stuyvesant. He quoted him vowing not to go back. Brooklyn.
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MTA Chairman Jano Lieber and Governor Hochul (Getty)
Most recently, a woman in Ocean County, N.J., was burned alive at Coney Island, and since Christmas, people have been randomly shoved in front of trains in near-fatal incidents between Morningside Heights and Tribeca. Several incidents have occurred.
“There is no denying that New York City is in a dramatically different situation today than it was in 2019,” Cuomo’s spokesperson said. “It could do more harm than good.” said Friday.
But Gov. Kathy Hochul, Cuomo’s former lieutenant governor, is pushing hard to enact the policy, which is meant to encourage commuters and residents to consider using mass transit to get to work or play in Midtown. It looked like he was working on it.
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Hochul’s office praised his current plan in a recent statement, saying the reduced congestion charge from the original $15 would save drivers $1,500 a year and that commuters would receive “a new and improved He said he could enjoy “subway service.”
“Introducing congestion pricing and fully supporting the MTA Capital Plan will decongest our roads, reduce pollution, and provide better public transportation for millions of New Yorkers,” Hochul said. ” he said.
Jano Lieber, chairman of the MTA, which oversees the state-run subway, bus and rail network, said Hochul was “stepping up” for people seeking cleaner air, safer roads and less congestion.
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FDR Drive on Manhattan’s East Side. One of the few roads exempt from tolls. (Getty)
He also noted that upgrades have already been made to the 7 subway line from Times Square to Flushing, Queens, and the L train from Union Square to Canarsie.
But Cuomo’s campaign accused Hochul and Lieber of insensitivity, saying he was the one who conceived and oversaw the overhaul of New York’s transit system at no additional charge.
When the New York Post asked Hochul for comment on the New York Post’s suggestion that Cuomo “hit the brakes” on congestion pricing, the governor directed comment to Lieber, a press secretary who called Cuomo ” “I turned it upside down,” he said.
“What will really hurt New York’s continued recovery is depleting the subway of much-needed funding sources as a result of decades of underinvestment,” said MTA’s Aaron Donovan. said.
“The $15 fee was passed by the MTA on Mr. Hochul’s watch, but please turn off the gaslight,” Azzopardi told FOX News Digital. “New Yorkers aren’t stupid.”
Cuomo previously told WNYW that people have the option to work from home, but that wasn’t an option when he first promoted the plan in 2019, and that if you were a commuter, it would cost you a lot at once. He said he would think twice about the idea of more people. “A lot of crime and a lot of homelessness.”
Cuomo’s campaign also said Hochul wants to take credit for the three-term administration’s efforts to get ahead of the new tolls.
“The difference here is that Governor Cuomo [new Amtrak/MetroNorth] Moynihan Railroad Hall and Second Avenue Subway [extension to East Harlem]also did a lot of work to fix and get the L train. [Grand Central’s] East Side Access and LIRR Third-Track completed. All Hochul wanted to do was cut the tape,” Azzopardi said.
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Cuomo’s call for a moratorium was joined by several New York state Republicans, who say they want to repeal it completely, while the former governor and possible 2025 mayoral candidate Mr. Cuomo continues to support congestion pricing.
Commuters from New Jersey must pay Port Authority tolls to cross the Hudson River, and suburban commuters must pay the same tolls via the East River, even if there is a slight “congestion” fee. Even if it is deductible.
Drivers who remain on FDR Drive or Joe DiMaggio West Side Highway will not be charged unless they enter the road.
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