Comments on: Hello MTA Bailout, So Long Truck Tsunami?

By: Consuelo DeGregorio

Consuelo DeGregorio — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:32:34 +0000

First of all lets forget about the tolled bridges for a moment, How about the millions of dollars wasted on the second avenue subway line!!!!!!!!!!!! For what to save a 3-4 block walk and they’ve been on or about 96th street for 2 years. Shut it down. Next 9 Million dollars alotted for subway station cleaning this is crazy!!!!! That is just 2 quick things I’m quite sure there are many many more very wasteful spending habits going on here. If your business is in the hole for 300 million dollars then that business is being run inproperly. Oh and lets no forget about renaming the Triboro for what oh my god that was a waste of a couple of million right there. Tolled bridges would mean less sight seeing cars and more mass transit use, then the trucks would be able to move around much easier than they are now.

I want a bail out.

By: Isa

Isa — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:04:00 +0000

“deadbeat drivers and truckers”?? Assuming that the cyclical trip described above (including pick-ups and deliveries) could take a trucker most of a day, at an average per-mile rate of $.45 (which is actually high), that toll could make a trip to the city actually COST a trucker money. Do you work for free?

By: Joby Jacob

Joby Jacob — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 03:42:29 +0000

um, sure they could eat…
triboro? GWB?

I’m assuming most food and goods sold in Manhattan are coming from Jersey via Port Elizabeth and not from the two remaining farms on Long Island and the two remaining factories in Williamsburg.

By: mfs

mfs — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 23:09:25 +0000

“Why don’t they just ban trucks on all City-Owned bridges right now.”

Because then no one in Manhattan could eat.

By: Larry Littlefield

Larry Littlefield — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:56:14 +0000

“Why don’t they just ban trucks on all City-Owned bridges right now.”

Because of height restrictions, many trucks can only use the bridges, not the tunnels.

For example, the height restriction for the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel is 12’9”; the interstate standard is 14’4″ and some trucks are oversized.

The larger trucks are needed to move some types of goods into Manhattan, including some construction materials and supplies.

By: Joby Jacob

Joby Jacob — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:19:17 +0000

Trucks are banned on the Brooklyn Bridge?
Why don’t they just ban trucks on all City-Owned bridges right now. That wouldn’t solve any other issues (like rescuing the MTA) but it would end the trucker tsunami. (If truckers had to pay MTA tolls though, perhaps revenue on the MTA bridges would go up anyways helping to partially close the shortfall)
However, long term the city should sell the bridges. There is no political will in the city to charge a toll which at the very least pays for the maintenance of the bridges, if the bridges were in the hands of the MTA then it being at least partially insulated from politics, would charge tolls.

By: Sean Sweeney

Sean Sweeney — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 03:21:07 +0000

John,

Thanks for getting streetsblog to publish Sam Schwartz’ map that illustrates so well why so many cars and trucks pass through western Brooklyn and lower Manhattan.

These deadbeat drivers and truckers scam the MTA of tolls ranging up to $58, costing us tens of millions in lost revenue, which could be put to use in mass transit projects – not to mention the infrastructure damage, congestion, delays and pollution they generate.

This toll reversal was sneaked through by Gov Cuomo in 1986 as a sop to Staten Islanders who were whining about the congestion on their side of the toll bridge. The SoHo Alliance filed a lawsuit in 1987 but lost, and then in 1990 D’Amato legislated the tolls permanently as part of the annual Federal Transportation bill.

Candidate Schumer running against D’Amato in 1998 swore to us that he would overturn D’Amato’s federalizing a local traffic issue once he got elected senator, only to betray us two weeks after he got into office.

When we excoriated Schumer for his perfidy, he told us that he would change his position back once we had a Dem congress. Furthermore, with EZ- Pass the Islanders rationale has been eliminated completely.

Yet, we now have that Dem congress and Schumer still kowtows to the Republicans in Staten Island to the detriment of the citizens of the other four boroughs. Isn’t it time we put heat on Schumer to do the right thing and keep his promises?

Perhaps TransAlt, Streetsblog and community organizers should join to eliminate this loophole that costs this city so much, yet rewards so few. Together we can outvote S.I.

By: John Kaehny

John Kaehny — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:43:38 +0000

Small trucks take Holland big ones Lincoln. No westbound tolls.

By: Josh

Josh — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:40:42 +0000

Wow, $58? I had no idea it was that steep (or, more to the point, that much of a difference between the two routes).

By: Manhattan User

Manhattan User — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:04:05 +0000

Actually trucks, larger than 20ft are banned from the Holland Tunnel. Not sure about Lincoln Tunnel. My understanding is that the trucks are not going around back into Staten Island, but getting on the Turnpike.

By: Shemp

Shemp — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 21:46:12 +0000

Even in the great counter-clockwise route, trucks from NJ still pay PA tolls on the Goethals, but that’s it.

By: Bike Dude

Bike Dude — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 21:37:42 +0000

Most arguments I have heard against congestion pricing and East River tolls is that it is a regressive tax, making manhattan more and more of a yuppified, upper-middle class haven. I don’t think this argument will hold up knowing that the tolls will go towards keeping MTA fares (barely) low enough for working stiffs to travel into the city.

By: mfs

mfs — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 21:17:20 +0000

This would also allow the creation of a significant incentive for truck fleets to convert to electric hybrids and ultra low-emissions trucks, if cleaner trucks are given a 50% or 75% discount. The Mayor’s congestion pricing plan would have done this and would have greatly incentivized people to convert. Furthermore, this would create a solid local industry of retrofitting trucks with particulate filters.

By: Larry Littlefield

Larry Littlefield — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 21:04:07 +0000

The proposed tolls wouldn’t competely eliminate my incentive to got out of my way to use the Brooklyn Bridge rather than taking the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel when driving to Manhattan.

But I only drive through Manhattan, not to it. For East of Hudson destinations, the cost of going into and out of Manhattan (two tolls) and using the FDR would be equal to using the BQE.

So the question is which is less congested? If more people were willing to take the BBT to Manhatan and NJ, perhaps the perpetual back-up where everyone moves right to stay on the BQE rather than go left for the tunnel would be alleviated.