Posted on 08/04/2008 3:57:20 PM PDT by reaganaut1
Updated, 4:44 p.m. | Defying the Bush administration, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced on Monday that it would block any flights that result from the federal government’s plan to auction off departure and arrival slots at the three major airports in the New York region. The Port Authority said the federal plan would “have a severe negative impact” on air travel and “would be illegal without Congressional authorization.”
The Port Authority’s decision contradicts a much-debated proposal that was introduced last year by the United States Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration, which want to introduce market-based pricing schemes as a way to reduce flight delays. The conflict will test the authority of the Department of Transportation, which Congress told to allocate airspace for safety efficiency, against the Port Authority, which owns or leases the runways, and is likely to push the dispute into the hands of the next president. The Port Authority, which has added its voice to a chorus of Democratic critics of the Bush administration’s plan, said it was acting “to prevent airline ticket prices from sharply increasing,” by an estimated 12 percent. The authority, which convened a task force on flight delays last year , said the auctions “would increase ticket prices while doing nothing to relieve or mitigate delays and congestion” and would reduce service between the New York region and small and medium-sized markets.
(Excerpt) Read more at cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com ...
Simple to fix... cut off all their federal funding...
The NYNJ Port Authority would not be able to block the airport gates like Geo. Wallace tried at the schoolhouse door.
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