Streetsblog New York City

OK, we have a winner of yesterday's photo caption contest. Democratic State Senators Hiram Monserrate, Carl Kruger, Pedro Espada, Jr. and Ruben Diaz, Sr. will henceforth be known as "The Fare Hike Four."

While we're at it, we figure if the State Senate is going to treat New York City's transit riders like clowns and turn the MTA funding process into a year-long circus, we're going to need a good graphic to go with the story. So, here's what Livable Streets Initiative graphic design genius Carly Clark came up with. From left-to-right that's Monserrate playing the role of the abusive Moe, Kruger as the developmentally-impaired Curly, Espada as Shemp, and Diaz as the bumbling but lovable Larry. 

We'll have travel mugs and t-shirts printed up soon so you can ride with the Fare Hike Four on your morning commute.

Pedro Espada photo: John DeSio

Here’s one little problem with the Kruger, Diaz, Espada, Monserrate MTA financing plan: They got the math wrong.

The State Senators (for convenience sake, let just refer to them "The Fare Hike Four" from now on) say they can satisfy the MTA’s short-term financing needs with a four percent fare and toll hike and a small payroll tax increase. The MTA says that math doesn’t work, according to Reuters:

The MTA’s chairman, H. Dale Hemmerdinger, estimated the
Senate plan would force the agency to raise fares and tolls by
17 percent — about four times more than the Senate calculated
– as it would only raise about $1 billion more.

I suppose it comes down to a question of who do you trust more with the numbers, Richard Ravitch or four venal, old pols in the nation’s most dysfunctional state legislature? If that’s a tough call for you, then it’s probably worth noting that Ravitch spent considerably more time working out his financing plan than did The Fare Hike Four. As Kathy Wylde at the Parternship for New York City says:

The State Senate has had almost a year to join the public discussion of funding for the transportation system. They waited until the very end of the process to come forward with a proposal that provides not a nickel for system maintenance and badly needed expansion of bus service, let alone a full capital program. It is time for both sides of the Senate — Democrat and Republican — to join the Governor and the Assembly in support of some version of the Ravitch Commission Plan.

Liz Benjamin at Daily Politics and Jimmy Vielkind at Politicker have some updates on the MTA funding discussions in Albany.

When asked about the MTA situation today, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Carl Kruger told Liz that his opposition to tolls on the East and Harlem River bridges has not softened but a new plan is coming together that will be, "comprehensive and so outside the box that everybody should want to partner with it." 

OK, so, I've got a free, signed copy of Jeff Mapes' "Pedaling Revolution" for the Streetsblog commenter who correctly guesses Kruger and friends' plan for staving off MTA fare hikes.

The headlines this morning were sobering for everyone who depends on New York City's transit system. Half-baked alternatives to the Ravitch plan are popping up left and right as bridge toll opponents dig in their heels, despite the whopping service cuts and fare hikes that loom for their constituents. With Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith bringing talks to a standstill, Streetsblog asked Gene Russianoff, senior lawyer for the Straphangers Campaign and veteran of many a fight over MTA financing, about what comes next.

Smith's latest gambit -- calling the MTA's March 25 deadline into question -- carries a lot of risk. "The deadline seems real to us," said Russianoff, noting that there may be some wiggle room, but not much. "The concern would be if the legislators say, 'We can wait a while.' That's a recipe for inaction."

There's been some speculation that the Ravitch proposals might get folded into the state budget, but that would face similar political hurdles to a stand-alone rescue package. All 30 Republican state senators are expected to vote against the budget, said Russianoff, meaning Democrats will have to vote as a single, 32-member bloc to gain passage.

If the Gang of Three and other Democratic obstructionists fail to realize that their constituents need a well-funded transit system much more than free bridges, there is a potential solution that might garner support from elements of both parties. "One thing with promise is to do the highway and bridge program at the same time as MTA financing," said Russianoff. "That gives Republican senators a reason to vote positively on the bill." The state's highway and bridge program faces its own funding shortfall, and like the MTA, it needs new revenue streams. Some of the bridge toll alternatives that pols are floating -- such as higher gas taxes and vehicle registration fees -- make more political sense as revenue for a road program, because, Russianoff says, "the highway people think it's theirs."

In response to the possible sinking of the MTA rescue plan by three recalcitrant state senators, the Campaign for New York's Future has set up an action alert enabling members of the public to contact their representatives directly via e-mail. The message, which may be tailored before sending, reads in part:

I am very concerned to hear that Senators Carl Kruger; Pedro Espada, Jr.; and Ruben Diaz, Sr. will refuse to pass a transit rider rescue plan like those proposed by Governor Paterson and Speaker Silver, if that plan includes any new tolls.

These senators have made it clear what they oppose, so I'm writing to make sure you know what I, as your constituent, oppose.

* I oppose increasing fares by 23%;
* I oppose shutting down entire subway lines;
* I oppose discontinuing dozens of bus routes in every borough;
* And I oppose longer waits and overcrowding.

The Campaign is urging transit-supporting New Yorkers to send their messages today.

The three city reps who nearly derailed the Democratic takeover of the State Senate have issued a joint statement declaring -- transit riders be damned -- they're not going to support bridge tolls. Liz Benjamin at the Daily Politics has the story:

The Three Amigos -- Sens. Carl Kruger, Pedro Espada Jr. and Ruben Diaz Sr. -- who recently reaffirmed their relationship and started strategizing again as a team, today issued a joint statement demanding that the MTA go "back to the drawing board" and do everything possible to avoid tolling the East and Harlem river bridges.

The three senators are "demanding" that the MTA agree to a forensic audit conducted by an outside entity and a complete accounting of all its assets - including real estate holdings, which is an issue other lawmakers have been hammering on for a while now.

The trio is open to the idea of a payroll tax, which is the other revenue-generating proposal made by the Ravitch Commission, but called the tolls a "non-starter."

With the Democratic majority hanging by a minuscule 32-30 thread and Republicans showing no signs of breaking ranks to support the Ravitch proposals, it would take a unified front in the Senate to pass the rescue plan. The brazen disregard for transit riders displayed by these three lawmakers could very well torpedo any chance to stave off drastic fare hikes and service cuts, shore up the MTA's finances, and keep the subways from slipping into a state of decline.

To better appreciate the fundamental absurdity of their arguments, follow the jump or, better yet, read Liz's full post.

Read more...

While the looming MTA doomsday scenario is desperate enough that Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has put forward a proposal to charge drivers roughly the same as transit riders to cross East and Harlem River bridges, Democrats over in the Senate are balking at the prospect of requiring drivers to give up their free rides. The Daily News reports on yesterday's Ravitch plan talks.

"If that is in there, there's no way I'm going to vote for it and you can take that to the bank," Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr. (D-Bronx) said after the afternoon meeting.

Streetsbloggers may remember Diaz as one of the legislators who opposed congestion pricing on the grounds that it may adversely affect the environment. His district faces a slew of subway and bus service reductions [PDF] without transit funding equal to that proposed under the Ravitch plan, but Diaz is as yet unwilling to stand up for the whopping 67 percent of households that don't even own a car.

Ditto Brooklyn's Carl Kruger, another congestion pricing opponent, who has called tolling "a non-starter" and "an insult to every outer-borough resident in New York City." Kruger should check his census data. Almost half of the households in his district alone are car-free, and those who own cars have an annual income that more than doubles those who don't. Yet it seems Kruger is willing to let the non-driving half of his constituency bear the brunt [PDF]. But what should we expect from the legislator who wanted to fine pedestrians for listening to iPods and talking on cell phones.

It's still unclear where Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith stands on bridge tolls. Smith's own Queens district, where some 34 percent of households don't own cars, also stands to lose bus and train service in lieu of increased MTA funding [PDF]. Like his counterpart Shelly Silver, Smith owes it to his constituents and all New Yorkers to come out strongly in favor of bridge tolls and gain majority support.