The transit commission empaneled by Gov. David Paterson here in New York has come back with a report that, while promising bus and subway riders a break, is being met with skepticism by that same public. The plan would drastically cut the amount of a fare increase, from 23% to 8%. Plugging the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's yawning budget gap would fall to two major revenue generators. One is a payroll tax on employers in the region. The other is tolls on on East and Harlem River bridges that are now free to cross.
You can imagine the reception the latter got. Lawmakers from Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx screamed bloody murder. This they've done every time the notion of tolls on those bridges has come up. That's precisely why they' re still free. Yet we live in different times. Although a New York Times analysis says the payroll tax alone would plug the budget gap, the tolls would serve another useful purpose. It's proposed to use that money to fund an expansion of existing bus service, from the creation of new depots to the creation of dedicated bus corridors that would be separate from other traffic.
This proposal is intriguing, and worth a look of its own. Many cities already have these corridors, and they reportedly make bus travel a faster and more efficient experience. As it stands now, vehicular traffic over the East River has no rhyme or reason. The RFK Triboro Bridge, Battery and Midtown Tunnels already charge to cross into Manhattan. The 59th St., Williamsburg, Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges don't. There is, of course, no feasible way to install toll booths at these crossings without creating perpetual gridlock. Technology being what it is, however, that problem can likely be overcome.
In the interest of fairness and the future of the city's transit system, this plan should be implemented, but with modifications. All bridges and tunnels over the East River should cost no more to cross than it does to come into Manhattan from New Jersey. That's not currently the case. This means they should all cost no more than $8 dollars round trip. The Harlem River crossings should be nominal, since the bridge spans are much shorter, no more than $5 dollars round trip.
Yes, it's going to hurt, but a 23% increase in the subway and bus fare would hurt more. What do you think?
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You are making an oversimplified argument that does not stand up to intelligent analysis. The amount of toll should not be tied to bridge length but to bridge function. The Harlem River Bridges are not just shorter, they perform completely different roles. Study Broadway Bridge carefully -- it is a local road that seamlessly connects the integrated communities of Inwood, Kingsbridge and Marble Hill. There is virtually NO through traffic that crossed that bridge to drive to work downtown (you would have to be insane to try that on 200 blocks of traffic signals). Inserting a toll creates a barrier in this integrated community - for people in the Bronx visiting their sick relatives at the Allen Pavilion, for Inwood residents taking a car or cab to go shopping at Stop and Shop in Kingsbridge, etc.
Toll the bridges that surround the CBD, where car traffic should be discouraged. Leave the 207th St and Broadway bridges alone and erect a toll barrier on the FDR and HHP at 125th St or similar instead.
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