Believe it or not, there is even grimmer budget news for NYC residents.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is swimming in a sea of red ink and sources tell CBS 2 HD drivers in the city might not like the bailout plan.
Nearly half a million cars go back and forth over the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg and 59th Street bridges every day for free. Some people think that’s not right.
“We already have tolls at the Battery Tunnel, Midtown Tunnel, the Triborough Bridge let’s put pricing on all of the crossings in between,” said Sam Schwartz, one of the leading transportation engineers in the country.
Guess what? State and city officials now seem to agree. Sources tell CBS 2 HD that putting tolls on some or all of the East River bridges is part of the bailout plan being considered for the MTA.
“People coming into the city should be paying for some of the service they get,” Schwartz said.
Tolling all four bridges may be a heavy lift for Mayor Michael Bloomberg right now, which is why it’s possible tolls could be put on just two.
Another option is to have tolls only during morning and evening rush hours.
Sources say putting tolls on all four spans could raise almost $1 billion for mass transit.
(Source: WCBSTV)
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3 Responses
It’s a socialist outrage to tax drivers for mass transit, at all. If mass transit really costs more, why should drivers be paying for it; let those who ride mass transit pay for their own rides.
Incidentally, weren’t highway tolls originally instituted as a temporary measure to pay for the roads being tolled, not as another source of income for other purposes?
As more things cost more,other extra costs are added.People lose jobs but must spend more to live. How about the mayor donating a billion to the city’s poor?
This Mayor is out of touch with most regular middle class citizens. He should be screaming bloody murder rather than going along with this mad plan. Maybe he should hire 2,000 more brownies to walk Ave J, CIA, 13th Ave etc and harass the best group of citizens this city has. Oh excuse me for forgetting but he is doing just that. As soon as they have the extra billion $$$’s they will have an additional billion in waste so things will never change. The only only possible solution is to CUT WASTEFULL SPENDING. But no politician can get voted in promising to cut waste because the unions don’t want cuts. So its “tax the citizens” through tolls & other such tricks. All we can do about it is vent on YWN. Thank you YWN for allowing us to vent our rage. Gut Voch to all!!!