Congestion Pricing Foes Prepared to Fight Against Implementation of Plan
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Putnam County Executive Kevin Byrne and other local Republican officials urged Gov. Kathy Hochul to call off the scheduled congestion pricing next month arguing that it will harm hardworking residents and the regional economy.
Byrne said the county filed an amicus brief last week in support of recently launched litigation from Rockland and Orange counties in hopes of halting the plan that would charge motorists $9 every time they enter Manhattan’s streets from 60th Street to Battery Park. The FDR Drive and West Side Highway are excluded from the toll, which is scheduled to start on Jan. 5.
“Congestion pricing as planned is set to put forth an additional regressive tax on hardworking New Yorkers, affecting our economy and our residents at a time where we’re suffering through record inflation,” Byrne said across the street from Yorktown Town Hall last Friday, accompanied by several other area officials.
Byrne, who voted against congestion pricing as an assemblyman in 2019, said it will disproportionately impact New York City police officers, firefighters and teachers and health care workers who live in the suburbs but not near train lines and businesses whose personnel must commute to the city. Ace Endico, Putnam’s largest private sector employer, estimated it will cost the company $250,000 a year, he said.
Supporters of congestion pricing have argued that it will help raise money for critical infrastructure improvements for the MTA as well as improve air quality and congestion in the city.
Hochul correctly placed a “permanent pause” on congestion pricing in June, Byrne said, citing the negative effects it would have on too many citizens and businesses and because it was overwhelmingly unpopular. However, she is likely now reneging on that pause and is taking action before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20. Trump has said that congestion pricing in the U.S. should be prohibited.
During the past month, an online petition opposing congestion pricing was started by the Taxpayer Action Network, a political action committee founded by Byrne to promote fiscally conservative policies in government.
“I think the comments by Gov. Hochul when she announced it would be on permanent pause acknowledged how wildly unpopular congestion pricing actually is,” he said. “Then she exposed herself shortly after the election when she un-paused her permanent pause, and then suggested somehow she was going to cut the tax even though there is no tax being proposed presently.”
Putnam County Legislator William Gouldman (R-Putnam Valley), one of the officials who accompanied Byrne, said many areas of the county and northern Westchester are in “a transit desert,” places that are difficult to access public transportation. Therefore, when residents of those communities must go into Manhattan, they are likely to drive.
“Residents are rethinking their finances and working conditions and residents are struggling just to make ends meet,” Gouldman said. “This is not a time to add an extra tax to the burden of our residents. This is not the way to do it.”
Hochul, who appeared Sunday on ABC’s Sunday With Bill Ritter to discuss this and other issues, said she suspended congestion pricing six months ago because the $15 toll was too high, and some vehicles would have paid as much as $23. While $9 is still high for many residents, there will be benefits to the city and the MTA, she said.
It is estimated that congestion pricing will lead to an 80,000-vehicle reduction every day.
“The objectives are to reduce congestion in Manhattan where the city has become paralyzed, emergency vehicles have difficulty getting through, buses are barely moving through,” Hochul said. “Our city is being paralyzed and also the environmental impacts as well as a revenue source. That was decided before I became governor. It is the law of the state.”
She said the projected $15 billion in revenue from congested pricing is needed to completely pay for the $68 billion capital plan for the MTA over the next five years.
“This is a system that’s over 100 years old,” Hochul said. “Governors before me have not had the courage to spend the money necessary to invest in new cars, invest in the cameras, invest with accessibility for people with disabilities and moms with strollers. I know how hard it is to get around. The money has to come from somewhere. We cannot let the system fail.”
Yorktown Deputy Supervisor Sergio Esposito said the state and the MTA need to be smarter with how they handle the money. Spending $1 million to figure out why there are thousands of people who jump the turnstiles instead of enforcing the law is one example of that, he said.
“I’m not asking for Gov. Hochul not to ask for more money; I’m asking Gov. Hochul to make better policies,” Esposito said.
While only Republican officeholders attended last Friday’s announcement, Byrne mentioned that many Democrats in New York City and New Jersey, including Gov. Phil Murphy, are also strongly opposed to the plan.
Murphy, in a statement put out by his office last month when Hochul announced she would lift the pause, said he was “firmly opposed” to congestion pricing.
“I urge Gov. Hochul to reconsider the plan, and I urge all elected officials in the region – including those set to take office in January – to speak out against this proposal,” Murphy stated. “Meanwhile, my administration will continue the fight to block this plan in court.”
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
