WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES APRIL 8, 2021 13
A historic investment in public transport
BY PATRICK FOYE
What a difference just a few
months can make. Two
months ago, the MTA’s
finances were facing a calamity of
unprecedented proportions and our
plan to establish the nation’s first
Central Business District Tolling
Program (CBDTP) was in limbo.
But thanks to President Biden, the
nation’s biggest supporter and most
famous user of mass transit, and our
tireless hometown champion, Senate
Majority Leader Schumer, the
federal government came through
with a new COVID-19 relief package
that has helped the MTA avoid
widespread cuts in service and layoffs
that would have decimated the
system and devastated New York’s
economy.
And then last week — just two
months into the new administration
— the president unveiled a massive
$2 trillion infrastructure plan that
outlines a bold vision for historic investment
in public transportation.
We also received long-awaited
federal guidance on how to proceed
with CBDTP, also known as congestion
pricing. This critical program
will help ease gridlock, promote
mass transit usage, and raise $15
billion for our historic 2020-2024
Capital Program to reinvest in our
transit system while improving
health by reducing air pollution.
While implementation of congestion
pricing won’t happen right
away, this direction allows us to hit
the ground running to conduct the
review and broad public outreach
necessary to move forward.
It’s been a long two years of waiting
to get to this point. During that
time, our team, led by Allison L.C. de
Cerreno, has been working hard to
lay the groundwork for congestion
pricing, hiring TransCore to begin
the preliminary design process
and later build and operate the
program.
Thankfully President Biden and
Transportation Secretary Buttigieg
saw the need for urgency and acted
quickly to advance our application.
They rightly recognized the wideranging
benefits of congestion
pricing.
We’ve seen in other cities how
tolling programs can help to significantly
reduce carbon dioxide emissions
and fossil fuel consumption.
According to the Federal Highway
Administration, those metrics fell
by 20 percent in London after the
city enacted a congestion surcharge.
Singapore’s tolling system prevents
OP-ED
the release of an estimated 175,000
pounds of carbon dioxide into the
air every day, and Stockholm’s policy
has led to a 10-14 percent drop in
emissions in its city center. We now
have a historic opportunity to follow
their lead here in New York and
advance our climate goals.
The Central Business District Tolling
Program will also ensure that we
have a critical element of funding for
our $51.5 billion 2020-2024 Capital
Program. Congestion pricing will
raise $1 billion a year that we can leverage
by issuing bonds to provide $15
billion toward critical infrastructure
projects that will fortify our system
for decades to come. We need a strong
and robust MTA more than ever as
the region looks to recover from the
pandemic. Mass transit is also the
great equalizer, and by investing in
and improving our network we can
improve equity for New Yorkers
across our service area.
As we work to aggressively implement
this vital program, we know it
will serve as a model for other cities
across the country. We’re committed
to doing it right so that the MTA can
again lead the nation and spur a new
golden age for mass transit.
Patrick Foye is the CEO of the New
York Metropolitan Transportation
Authority.
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