New York Awarded $354 Million for Congestion Plan

By John Hughes and Henry Goldman

August 14, 2007

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New York City will receive $354 million to reduce traffic into Manhattan if the Legislature approves a plan consistent with Mayor Michael Bloomberg's goals to cut congestion and pollution, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said.

Bloomberg has proposed charging car drivers $8 -- $21 for trucks -- entering Manhattan south of 86th Street on weekdays between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. To qualify for the $354 million, New York state lawmakers have until March 31 to approve that plan or adopt another idea that could match Bloomberg's expectation to reduce car volume by 6.3 percent.

“New York City's proposal was very bold, very innovative,'' Peters told reporters today in Washington. It “gives us an opportunity here in the United States to implement some congestion pricing plans, proposals, that have been used very successfully in other areas throughout the world.''

The city's eligibility to receive the money hinges upon the work of a 17-member commission that will report its findings next January for approval by the City Council and the Legislature, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said today. The Manhattan Democrat said Bloomberg hasn't convinced him his plan is the answer.

“While there has been support for the mayor's plan, there has also been very strong opposition,'' said Silver, who appoints three members to the commission. “I believe it is essential that we consider these concerns.''

Alternative Proposals
Silver told reporters he could imagine proposals to reduce subway fares during rush hour to encourage mass transit use or decrease tolls to encourage drivers to enter Manhattan in off- peak hours.

The federal grant stipulates that New York use pricing as a means to reduce traffic congestion.

The federal money would help buy 367 buses and set up express routes, park-and-ride facilities, ferries, and cameras and electronic toll collectors to track vehicles entering Manhattan, Bloomberg said.

“We've worked hard to secure the funds and it's a major victory for this city,'' Bloomberg said during a news conference in the Bronx, where was joined by Governor Eliot Spitzer.

Greenhouse Gases

Bloomberg said the “congestion pricing'' program was part of an effort to reduce production of greenhouse gases 30 percent by 2030. In London, where a similar plan cut traffic congestion by 20 percent, greenhouse gas emissions fell 15 percent, London Mayor Ken Livingstone has said.

Bloomberg said he would be willing to consider another approach if it can decrease traffic and pollution and increase revenue to be used for mass transit, as he says congestion pricing would.

“We're not married to any one plan,'' he said.
Bloomberg said the city, the state and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority would have to buy new buses and establish express routes in advance of any action by the Legislature.

The mayor, who had asked for more than $500 million, said the city would have to pay for more of the expense of setting up toll-taking and enforcement of the congestion pricing plan with revenue from the fees defraying those costs.

Questions Raised

Last month, the state Assembly voted to study the city's traffic congestion and develop a plan by the end of March that would reduce the number of vehicles entering Manhattan. Some lawmakers balked at the mayor's proposal, raising questions about its impact on commuters and residents in neighborhoods just outside the congestion zone.

“I'm optimistic that this will get done,'' Republican state Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said. “This is a plan that needs some refinement, and that will be negotiated, hopefully.''
The full U.S. grant won't be awarded unless state lawmakers approve a plan within 90 days of convening in January, Peters said.

Spitzer said he would empanel the commission “in short order'' to study the issue and deliver recommendations on traffic reduction.

“We feel great that we will get this done,'' Spitzer, a Democrat, said today at the news conference. “We all worked very hard in Albany with the mayor's assistance on how we would refine, if needed, the precise implementation of the mayor's plan. So we're looking forward to getting that work done so we can spend these funds.''

The money “provides the carrot that will help pay for new buses, faster subways and the other measures,'' Kathryn Wylde, president of the Partnership for New York City, said in a statement. “This is a tremendous breakthrough.''

Primary Supporter
The partnership, an organization of more than 100 corporate chief executives, has been the primary supporter of the mayor's congestion pricing proposal.

The city will receive $1.6 million immediately for traffic management, while the rest, including $213.6 million for transit, won't be awarded until after state approval, Peters said. Other funds include $112 million for bus corridors and $10.4 million for technology.

New York, one of nine finalists for $1.1 billion in U.S. funds, had requested $540 million. The Transportation Department is awarding a lower amount because that is the total necessary for ``critical components'' of the plan and the amount that also meets eligibility requirements, Peters said.

New York received the most of the five cities to receive federal transit grants. Minneapolis got $133 million; San Francisco, $159 million; Seattle, $139 million, and Miami, $63 million.
The mayor is founder and majority owner of Bloomberg News parent Bloomberg LP.

To contact the reporters on this story: John Hughes in Washington at jhughes5@bloomberg.net; Henry Goldman in New York at hgoldman@bloomberg.net.