Friday, June 8, 2007 the pending proposal for Congestion Pricing gets an unusual test. A joint legislative committee hearing (many committees, many chairs) is set to start at 10AM at the Association of the Bar at 42 West 44th Street. If you’re interested and you can, go. It should be interesting because Assembly Member Richard Brodsky, so far an outspoken plan opponent, will have a leading role there. An interesting pro-congestion pricing coalition, The Campaign For New York’s Future [1] is calling for people to show up by 8:15 (The doors open at 9AM). (Annie Karni's NY Sun coverage of the hearing is here [2].)
UPDATE:Congestion pricing supporter, Senate Majority Leader Bruno has introduced the bill says Liz Benjamin [3] and The Albany Project's Lipris [4]. Streetsblog [5] has the 154 page text if you're into self-abuse. Has a deal been struck?
As a result, for the last few days, everyone I’ve been meeting has been talking about Congestion Pricing and PlanNYC 2030. Marty Markowitz, at Commerce Bank love-fest yesterday, bobbed, weaved, cited many objections, as other outer borough elected have done. In particular, Markowitz worried that drivers would flood the neighborhoods adjacent to the Zone, exporting the congestion to the edges.
NYC Central Labor Council Chair Ed Ott has become, as I hear it, even more vocal in support. Last night he told a gathering of the NYC Apollo Alliance, a local branch of a national labor-citizen-environmental coalition [6], that NYC’s working people take mass transit to work and that the question, as he saw it, was how to fund major mass transit improvements. (While I think NYC police, fire, sanitation and teachers union members often drive to work in or through the zone and get reserved parking, Ott is right in general). After the meeting, one of the great treats for me was to see Ott get on the subway not into a limo.
Sewall Chan in the Empire Zone [7] reports the joint appearance of Mayor Bloomberg, Governor Spitzer and US Transportation Secretary Mary Peters in support of NYC’s application for congestion pricing federal funding. See also David Saul in the Daily News [8]. Spitzer appointee Elliot Sander, the MTA Chairman has endorsed the plan [9] and the Real Estate Board [10] has begun running commercials in favor of PlaNYC which you can see on Streetsblog [11].
One very hard issue seems to be on what projects should the money raised by congestion pricing be spent? It appears that, in place of actual mass transit improvements, the money could be diverted to prevent or reduce threatened future fare increases. Thus, when, at the request of the Straphanger Campaign, NYC’s Independent Budget Office predicted future deficits and a $3.00 fare, here [12] for example, Mayor Bloomberg was quickly quoted by the Post [13] as claiming that congestion pricing proceeds could help stuff the fair box.
One fascinating detail. The Drum Major Institute [14], a think tank I like which has, from time to time, expressed intense criticism of Mayor Bloomberg's programs, has endorsed his plan and invited him to be a guest of honor at their very late spring party because of PlaNYC. To find out more about their annual benefit which also honors PBS Talk Shower Tavis Smiley, click here [15]. Won't that be a wonder! One observer, however, pointed out that this whole thing has been the creation of Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff whose last two projects were the Olympics and the West Side Stadium. Will he meet with equal success here? To be fair, PlaNYC seems to have been the result of extensive discussions with many stakeholders. Unions, community groups, environmentalists all met with the City's planners and their concerns were heard and addressed.
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