"Kathy Hochul's Congestion Pricing Flip-Flop Fiasco." We discuss the 11th-hour decision to “indefinitely suspend” congestion pricing in New York. Was this bad politics or atrociously bad politics? What does it mean for the future of the subway, the economy, the environment and more?
Trying to figure out how to unravel the political, cultural, and institutional brainworms of #CarSupremacy... with cars-for-brains democrats cancelling #CongestionPricing plans and trying to somehow fool themselves into making the DOTs solvent "with equity and climate as top priorities" is only going to further burden the poorest of kids with subsidies for the wealthiest of drivers. Agencies that build roads for cars are fundamentally unequipped to fix this problem & so is our political system.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul delays traffic congestion pricing plan for New York City.
The Hill quotes the governor: “Let’s be real: a $15 charge may not mean a lot to someone who has the means, but it can break the budget of a working- or middle-class household. It puts the squeeze on the very people who make this City go: the teachers, first responders, small business workers, bodega owners."
In retrospect, it's clear that as soon as #CongestionPricing cleared what was supposed to be the last hurdle, advocates should have started posting pictures of Varick Street at rush hour with "25 days until we clean this up."
Sad to see Mastodon so quiet on #CongestionPricing today so I went back to Musk-land to rant about it. Here's one thing I wrote:
I think most of the suburban drivers see congestion pricing in entirely symbolic terms. It represents the abandonment of a strategy of enriching the middle class through subsidies to driving - something many of them have built their lives around. Even THOUGH they benefit, they hate the long-term implications.
"A fourth person familiar with the matter said Hochul is responding to worries raised by Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader who is fiercely trying to win back a Democratic majority this year."
We've known for years that Jeffries is a car-brained idiot. The success of #CongestionPricing will help Democrats win back the house, not the other way around.
Public comment on transportation projects is not representative. It is not a vote. It is also not a shouting match.
It doesn't matter how many people show up to support any position. It doesn't matter how loud or passionate they are. It matters whether they make a good argument.
That said, because government officials can be tempted to interpret public comments as a vote, I'm glad 2/3 of the comments were in favor of #CongestionPricing in NYC.
#Washington is planning a #RoadUsageCharge (#RUC). The main driver for this seems to be that WA is mostly funding its road maintenance from the gas tax and that is projected to fall significantly, ostensibly due to EVs ("from $1.3 billion in 2026 to under $1 billion in 2035" - https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2023/10/11/washingtons-long-road-to-replacing-the-gas-tax/). I understand that the migration to EVs causes revenue loss that needs to be addressed but I'm very skeptical that an RUC can be implemented in a reasonable way.
A toll system w/ #CongestionPricing could be an alternative. The problem with this is that something like #GoodToGo needs expensive equipment. The cost of building this out needs to be weight against the cost of #RUC. My guess is that the long term cost of it is lower than the administrative cost of RUC with all its exemptions. It can be made much fairer by only charging in places where alternatives are available and it's a better tool to address congestion and environmental concerns. #Traffic
RT @regionalplan Half of one percent of residents in Orange and Dutchess counties drive into the CBD - fewer than 3,200 people.
Meanwhile, #congestionpricing revenue will fund projects along the Port Jervis and Hudson Metro-North lines. Twice as many people would benefit from better transit.
RT @tri_state Gov. Kathy Hochul pointed to New York's transportation sector accounting for nearly 1/3 of the state's greenhouse gas emissions. #congestionpricing will reduce the emissions that endanger our health, our children, and our city. #StateoftheState
RT @cssnyorg Revenue generated by #congestionpricing will help finance MTA's crucial transit projects, including investments in buses, subways and commuter rail.
It will also create tens of thousands of local jobs throughout the state.
Interesting convo on Nextdoor, even if poorly handled, about the need for a car if you have a lifestyle of traveling outside the city often and have a big dog which you can’t take on public transpo.
My takeaway is that it might be better to live outside the city where you can have a big dog and car and and just commute to the city to work (as opposed to having your cake and eating it too by living in the city and needing a car for such things).
RT @samiliebman What hasn’t been discussed is what the non-ezpass charge for cars to enter the CBD under #comgestionpricing. It’s a whopping $22.50 peak, $5.50.
And under the #congestionpricing proposal, the MTA reserves right to charge 25% more to drive below 60th Street on #gridlockalalert days.
RT @komanoff That Star-Ledger editorial could have gone further and called out Murphy for spending $10+B on his asinine, self-defeating NJTP Newark Bay - Hudson County highway widening. But the editorial's ringing endorsement of #congestionpricing is welcome and gorgeous. Bravo!