Graphic courtesy of The New York Times. Edited by me. For the original, click here.

As the debate over the congestion fee rages, New York City Transit decided to release a report this week that came as a surprise to, well, exactly no one. The subways are very crowded, the MTA announced. In fact, the subways may even be too crowded.

To which, I say, “Duh.”

New York City Transit has studied its train lines, looking for on-time performance during rush hour and trains in which each passage gets three square feet of space. In other words, everyone gets their own 20-inch square tile on which they can stand. In a city in which three square feet can cost a lot of money, this valuable subway real estate is hard to come by. The New York Times summarizes:

What is revealed is both predictable and eye-opening. Many subway lines are simply maxed out, meaning there is no room on the tracks they use to add trains that could carry the swelling numbers of riders. And that has implications that range from day-to-day decisions about how trains travel through the system to long-term planning on how to best move people around a growing city…

[NYCT President Howard] Roberts said that on many subway lines, especially the heavily used numbered lines, there is little or no room to accommodate more riders.

The Daily News picked up on the story with an interesting twist. They claim that there is no room for the boost that may come due to the congestion pricing. As those numbers amount to several hundred thousand new riders out of an estimated 7 million per day, I find this conclusion hard to believe and so does the MTA.

Let’s think about this: First, we have to consider the Second Ave. subway. One of the goals of the congestion fee is to properly fund this new subway line. Considering that three of the most overcrowded subway lines are the 4, 5 and 6 trains and the Second Ave. subway is designed to alleviate just this overcrowding on the East Side IRT, well, then we’ve solved one problem.

Second, I believe that the congestion fee won’t affect the IRT subway lines as much as anyone thinks. First, nearly everyone commuting from northern Manhattan and the Bronx along the IRT lines already takes the subway. If commuters choose to drive from north of 86th St. to anywhere in the so-called Central Business District, they do so because they can, by and large, afford to do so. The people on the Upper West Side and Upper East Side will continue to pay $500-$600 a month to park their cars in garages, and they will pay the $8 congestion fee.

Relatedly, the lines that will see the most growth are those out in Queens. While the E is already overcrowded, I think the F and V trains from Queens to Manhattan will see a large increase in passengers. I think the Bay Ridge and southern Brooklyn trains will see a large increase in passengers. For those people, driving is simply quicker than taking slow subways (and isn’t that why we need express service along the F tracks?). Some will continue to drive; others won’t.

But in reality, the transit lines that should see the greatest increases in ridership numbers are Metro-North, the LIRR, New Jersey Transit and PATH trains. Commuters who, for some reason, aren’t using commuter rail lines will turn to those trains as a way to avoid the congestion fee if the economics make sense.

So, yes, the subways are very crowded. Anyone who rides the train on a daily basis can attest to that fact. But it won’t be worse after the congestion fee, and in the long run, the congestion fee is designed, through funding the Second Ave. subway, to make life better for straphangers. The City’s quality of life — from traffic to noise to the environment — will improve and so will subway service, crowded trains or not.

With apologies to Monty Python…

Monday dawned a new week, and with it, a whole slew of news on the in-limbo congestion fee plan set for by Mayor Bloomberg in his PLANYC2030 package. The coverage, by and large, is falls favorably on the side of those of us arguing in favor of the plan, and it gave me hope that the state legislature will strike a deal for the plan when they reconvene in the middle of July.

The day of congestion articles started out with a strident editorial in The New York Times. Picking up on my themes from yesterday’s post (linked above), The Times called for the state legislature to pass the congestion fee plan before the City and state misses out on the $500 million the Bush Administration is dangling in front of us. The Grey Lady opined:

New Yorkers, and anyone else who rides public transportation in and around the city, should mark July 16 on their calendars. By that date, if state lawmakers do their jobs, they will have paved the way to ensuring billions of dollars of new cash to maintain and expand mass transit. If not, the current $2 fare for a bus or subway ride can be expected to increase at least 20 percent and maybe as much as 50 percent. The choice is that stark, and riders, who will pay the price if legislators fail, will know exactly where to direct their pique.

New York is a candidate for as much as $500 million in federal money to help pay for Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s plan for congestion pricing, which would charge a fee to drivers on Manhattan’s busiest streets. The federal Department of Transportation has said New York is unlikely to qualify if it misses the deadline to authorize a plan.

The Times, echoing what commenter Todd noted last night, bemoans New York City’s limited home rule and its reliance on Albany. This editorial also marks its most strident position on the congestion fee in the last few months. Take heed, Albany. We know what’s best for us down here; you better listen.

Meanwhile, as The Daily News reports, Mayor Mike is optimistic that the congestion plan will pass next month. He’s becoming buddy-buddy with Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and knows that his political legacy and future are riding on this proposal.

Finally, in a sign that portends well for congestion fee proponents, opponents of the plan aren’t too optimistic that their recent victory will be a long-term one. While those against the plan — mainly residents who live far from the subway in Queens — know that tens of thousands would suffer from the congestion fee, they also recognize, as Metro points out, that literally millions would benefit from the money funneled from the congestion fee to the MTA.

Increased subway service and better surface transportation is a win for everyone in New York City. Make no mistake about it.

Albany gridlock, long the bane of New York politics, is killing Mayor Bloomberg’s congestion fee plan for now. With the end of the legislative session arriving last week, a battle of political wills between Gov. Eliot Spitzer and State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno left the fate of the congestion fee plan up in the air until the middle of July.

Early last week, it seemed as though Bruno and Spitzer would come to an agreement on a whole slew of legislative issues. But Spitzer’s refusal to budge on the issues of campaign finance reform, Bloomberg’s refusal to amend his plan (rightfully so), and Bruno’s unwillingness to bend resulted in a deadlock at the end of the State Senate’s current session expired.

The Daily News has more: