Congestion Pricing in NY
In case you had not heard, Mayor Bloomberg is trying to institute congestion pricing similar to what they have in London (you'd get charged eight dollars for entering Manhattan, with a discount if you used a toll bridge to enter). I think this has potential to work well and will encourage people to take mass transit. I just hope that they are not overwhelmed with people who decide to take the subway instead of paying eight dollars. I'm surprised to see how quickly it is moving thus far, I expected it to stall out in the state legislature, but it looks like it may not.
3 comments:
1. nys/nyc seems too intent on legislating everything - we have the smoking ban, the trans fat ban; they've tried to ban the use of ipods while crossing the street ban and the use of certain plastics.
2. congestion pricing makes me look forward to moving out of the city. i think it is an unfair tax and just pushes the congestion out to the other boroughs. anyone who takes the subway regularly knows that the trains are overcrowded (at rush hour), and there's never a bus when you need one.
on the other hand, we've just seen how tolls nicely work - there were relatively few cars on the toll road from I95 to the FDR. On the other hand the Henry Hudson Parkway is always packed (no tolls there).
so what is it that we are trying to achieve with congestion pricing?
no one wants to drive in manhattan. it's awful. taking the train is always better & faster if your in manhattan. the problem is getting out of manhattan - there's no convenient way out. and that is really why most of us drive in there - if you ask me.
I think it depends on where you want to go when you leave Manhattan. For me, I would not mind taking the Long Island Railroad into the city, just because I would not have to deal with finding parking for my car. On the other hand, coming from other areas, I can definitely see how it might be difficult. Sometimes I think I can make better time walking than taking a bus.
I can definitely see how someone might think that NY legislates a lot. I'd like to see improvements in mass transit as a result of this congestion charge, but I think any benefits will take years (if they ever occur)
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