Streetsblog notes a recent Brooklyn Paper article in which the people on the street would rather see the East River bridges tolled than face a steep fare hike and service cuts. So far, we’ve seen studies that indicate how small of an impact the tolls would have on the vast majority of people and how no one wants a fare hike. Yet, the City Council still seems reluctant to the idea of guaranteeing this revenue stream for the MTA. I just hope this political stalemate ends well for the straphangers, but I’m not too optimistic.
Pols, not public, do not support bridge tolls
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It is not surprising. Many of the people bending these pols ears are people who drive. But the majority of their constituents rely heavily on transit. So often, especially for entrenched politicians, their worldview becomes skewed.
Now if only we could elect someone to city council who supports tolling the bridges and funding transit . . .
Ben, hope to see you on the 28th at the MTA hearing. It’s going to be a big one and I hope to have a sizable contingent there to protest the planned cuts. And really the only way to avoid those cuts is with adequate funding mechanisms in place.
It kills me that nobody in the media is putting the blame of funding the MTA on mayor Mike. The city does NOT pay there fair share for the system that allows most of its workforce to travel.
I can’t locate the article right now but there was an article last year stating with the numbers that the city pays the same amount now as it did 20 years ago.
Neither the city nor the state has been paying their fair share for years.
It is fashionable to blame everything on the MTA, but the bigger failure has been from state and local politicians. Pataki, Giuliani, and Bloomberg all deserve harsh criticism for their stewardship.
To expand on what Gary said, Eric, it’s true that the Mayor has cut the city’s share of MTA funding, but he and the Governor have actually been pushing alternative funding sources (congestion pricing and now the Ravitch plan). The State Legislature has so far been unwilling to vote for these proposals, and in fact cut $50 million from the MTA budget last year.
As far as the City Council goes, you should definitely vote for a candidate like Gary in the fall. But in the upcoming debate on the Ravitch proposals, keep in mind what quintile your City Council district is in. If a council member from a green, yellow or orange district argues against bridge tolls, they’re actually voting against the interests of the majority of their constituents.
Good map, Cap’n. I forwarded it to Joan Millman’s office.