Posted on 06/09/2024 2:57:38 PM PDT by Libloather
Gov. Kathy Hochul scuttled the congestion toll to enter Midtown because she believes too many people are afraid to take the subway so they drive in instead, ex-Gov. David Paterson said Sunday.
“What she told me in a private conversation was she just thought about people who were afraid to ride the subways, so they drive their old car over the bridge, and they have to pay all this money,” Paterson said on 77 WABC radios’s “The Cats Roundtable.” “She was thinking really of individuals who would be affected.
“Hochul realized that some of the problems that the antagonists to congestion pricing are raising are not going to go away,” said the former governor, who is a Democratic, as is the governor.
Felony assaults on straphangers soared more than 50 percent from before the pandemic in 2019 through last year, with 373 vs. 570 incidents.
The violent trend prompted authorities to flood the subway system with extra cops — but even that has resulted in just a 1% decrease in overall transit crime between January and March of this year compared to the first quarter of 2023, according to the NYPD stats.
Paterson admitted Hochul’s 11th hour about-face was jarring coming “so close to the June 30 deadline,” when the MTA was supposed to implement the controversial first-in-the-nation $15 congestion toll to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
BS, it’s all about elections, which is to say it’s all about power. Come January, NYers will be paying this outrageous tax, count on it.
“Gov. Hochul shelved congestion toll over subway-crime worries, David Paterson claims”
No, no, no. Look at the polling. Footsteps. Trump is 7 points down with Kennedy Jr. counted. And Trump vowed to KILL her tolling plan.
5 months out and Trump is already getting results.
How were they going to enforce this congestion tax?
I can see how it would be collected if entering via the Holland Tunnel, Lincoln Tunnel, Brooklyn Battery Tunnel.
But if you are already in Manhattan north of 60th street, and then drive south, how would they have collected the tax?
The squeegy guys got a new gig..
There’s a way to do a lot of this, Kathy, but maybe you wouldn’t approve of it.
How to enforce?
Put up liscence plate readers, ID the car’s location and time.
Send a bill, not paper if possible. Maybe put a list of fees due on the web, and the car owner must check on himself. Does not depend on who is driving, it is the car.
Enforce it through the DMV. Pay (with penalties and interest) or no registration.
Remember those coder jobs Joe was recommending? Maybe they are now AI jobs, like this one to identify, bill, and enforce.
In other words, those pain in the ass peons (voters)just don't know what's good for them.
The MTA is a cess pool of corruption, the huge hole in the budget can be plugged but she and the other NY politicians won't do what any responsible CEO and CFO would do in the private sector to fix it.
The data is in and New York City wasn't going to get the money promised and would then have to explain why korporations running the tolling were getting paid while the city was losing money.
...that and the constitutionality of charging people to drive on city streets.
...and losing taxpayer funding - you charge a toll - no matching Federal (or state) dollars.
“The MTA is a cess pool of corruption, the huge hole in the budget can be plugged but she and the other NY politicians won’t do what any responsible CEO and CFO would do in the private sector to fix it.”
They have the huge TBTA bridge and tunnel toll gold mine plus massive federal and state subsidies, and they still can’t make ends meet.
Cameras were already installed inside Manhattan, ready for the congestion fee.
Interesting there’s no mention of all the lawsuits against the congestion act. People living near the West side highway and FDR drive put up a stink about the future air pollution the fee will create. Even NJ complained.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.