![]() “The MTA said the Bronx alone could face 700 more trucks every day.” ![]() “In the MTA acknowledges, in their report to the federal government, that if their congestion tax program goes into effect, there will be more cars diverted here, at the tunnel, and trucks in northern New Jersey by the GW Bridge, and to the outer boroughs just outside the tolling zone,” Gottheimer said. “If they are serious about getting cars off the road, they would spend every single dollar from this project on the expansion of the 7 line.”Ĭiting the MTA’s plan to set some congestion-pricing revenue aside for pollution mitigation in the Bronx - where traffic is expected to increase once tolling begins - Gottheimer called the plan “anti-environment.” expand the 7 line to Secaucus Junction station here in New Jersey,” Menendez added, bringing up a long-discussed subway expansion idea. “If the MTA is serious, and this is not a revenue shift to fund their projects. ![]() “It’s a revenue shift from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to the MTA - there’s no way around it,” Menendez said, adding that the lost money could keep the Port Authority from replacing its Midtown bus terminal. The congestion pricing plan is expected to finance some $15 billion in capital funding for the MTA. The expected reduction in traffic at Port Authority crossings would cost the bistate agency $1.25 billion over the next decade, Gottheimer said. The lawmakers said that by discouraging drivers from entering Manhattan, congestion pricing would also cut toll revenue for the Port Authority, which operates the bridges and tunnels between New York and New Jersey. “If people want to go down to Exchange Place or Newport to take the PATH, this traffic will go through our neighborhoods,” Menendez said. The toll would generate $1-$1.5 billion a year and support $15 billion in debt financing for mass transit improvement.He said congestion pricing would clog Jersey City with cars of people who choose not to drive to Manhattan. The environmental assessment found the charge would cut traffic, improve air quality, make buses more reliable and increase transit use by 1%-2%. Drivers could apply existing bridge and tunnel tolls to congestion charges. Last year, MTA said passenger vehicle drivers could pay $9 to $23 to enter at peak times, while overnight tolls could be as little as $5. MTA said it was grateful the Federal Highway Administration found the document met standards for legal sufficiency. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) said on Friday congestion pricing "is a generational opportunity to make it easier for people to get around in, and get to, the Central Business District, by reducing traffic and funding improvements to the public transit system." But the federal government under President Donald Trump did not take any action. New York lawmakers approved the plan in 2019, and it was originally projected to start in 2021. city to follow London, which began a similar charge in 2003. traffic, would become the first major U.S. New York, which has the most congested U.S. The city wants to charge a daily variable toll for vehicles entering or remaining within the central business district, defined as between 60th Street in midtown Manhattan and Battery Park on Manhattan's southern tip. A study released last year projected would reduce the number of cars entering Manhattan by 15% to 20%. In August, New York said drivers could face a traffic congestion charge of up to $23 a day in late 2023. The approval means the New York project sponsors are cleared to put the environmental assessment and draft finding of no significant impact out for a 30-day public notice before the federal agency makes its final determination. The Federal Highway Administration approval is a milestone in efforts to implement the plan announced in 2019 to reduce traffic and provide funding to improve mass transit by using tolls to manage traffic in central Manhattan. May 5 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday approved the release of the final environmental assessment for New York City's congestion pricing plan for public comment, a key step before the project can be green-lighted.
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