Opposition to charging New Yorker drivers to enter an area they already have a license to operate a vehicle in, where the roads have been paved for almost a 100 years, isn't over. Previous attempts to tax the drivers have met with lawsuits (which stopped a version in 1980) and acts of Congress passed to block it (which stopped tolls on East and Harlem river bridges in 1977)
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said the vote did not spell an end to his fight against congestion pricing. The state of New Jersey filed a suit arguing congestion pricing should be blocked because it will result in more traffic and pollution in the Garden State.
Streetsblog reported that the program's supporters outnumbered its opponents by a 2-to-1 margin in the MTA's latest public comment period on the tolls.
I was stationed in Monmouth, NJ twice in the mid 60s. Liked it so much I volunteered for Vietnam and never looked back!
ReplyDeleteI will never believe that supporters outnumbered opponents. More fake news. London commenced congestion pricing some years ago with the result that retail business in London dropped 30%. People will buy elsewhere. The City is so unsafe that one does not want to go there. I live thirty miles outside of New York City, was born and raised there, and now see no reason to risk my life there. It is a sorrowful state of affairs. Many corporations have already said that they will move. Gov. Murphy of New Jersey has been courting City businesses for over a year in anticipation of this foolish move. The money for transportation will more than likely never be seen in its entirety going to improve public transportation. Where we live one cannot take a train into the City unless we cross to the east side of The Hudson River. Only the #9 bus will get us to 41st Street and Eighth Avenue - after sitting on it for one-and-a-half hours. We will spend our money locally.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know you were that close!
DeleteI have no idea if there's anything on my bucket list I need to see in NYC, but there are probably a few museums there I really ought to visit at least once before kicking the bucket
that's a smart move on the part of the NJ gov.
California lied about a roads bill, said no way would it ever be tossed into the general fund, and just after the law was passed to add a tax to the gasoline price, the fund was opened up for politicians to spend on anything they want
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