"Today is Monday. There is work to be done."

So said David Paterson, who was sworn in as New York's 55th governor just after 1:00 this afternoon. Two Mondays from now, the City Council and state Legislature will need to have adopted a congestion pricing plan if the city is to receive $354 million in federal transportation funds. Opinions on whether the governor will work to make that happen still vary wildly, even among those who've talked to people close to Paterson.

Here is the Daily News, from Friday:

Incoming Gov. David Paterson may have declined to take a stand on congestion pricing Thursday - but members of his inner circle have been lobbying for the proposal.

During his first press conference since Gov. Spitzer resigned in disgrace, Paterson said he needed to delve deeper into details of the plan to charge motorists $8 to drive south of 60th St.

"Although the mayor has not directly discussed congestion pricing with him, it would seem to be a good sign that people very close to the new governor are supportive," a City Hall source said.

Former Deputy Mayor Bill Lynch and former Paterson campaign manager Luther Smith have been pitching the toll scheme as a way to fund mass transit improvements in underserved minority communities.

Smith is president of Lynch's lobbying firm, Bill Lynch Associates, which has been doing pro-pricing outreach for Communities United for Transportation Equity.

Both Lynch and Smith are advising Paterson as he makes the transition to the state's highest office.

And here is a Crain's story filed yesterday:

AS THE DEADLINE APPROACHES for legislative approval of congestion pricing, Mayor Michael Bloomberg's plan faces a new hurdle in the state Senate.

Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith, D-Queens, has supported the idea, but he is making no effort to rally his conference behind it. Democrats from the boroughs outside Manhattan don't want to endorse a plan that they believe is unpopular with constituents.

"It's a very heavy lift, and Malcolm recognizes that it's a problem for his members," one senator says. "He's not pressuring us."

Moreover, Mr. Bloomberg has not delivered transit upgrades that senators have requested for their districts. Instead, the legislator says, "I've gotten the same talking points over and over."

The back-and-forth continues from last week, when Paterson said his incoming admin was "taking a look" at pricing. It's the only public statement he's made so far on the subject.

On Wednesday Crain's will host a breakfast forum at the Battery Park Ritz-Carlton featuring Mayor Bloomberg and federal Transportation Secretary Mary Peters. The event is sold out.

Photo: Mary Altaffer/Associated Press via New York Times

Thanks to another 11:30am press conference in Midtown, I figured Streetsblog might be the only press to cover Mayor Bloomberg's announcement of a new, citywide residential parking permit program. But, no. There was plenty of other media gathered at the corner of Bond and Bergen Streets in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn. Let's see if there's any room in tonight's newscasts and tomorrow's papers for stories about something other than Governor Spitzer.

Stay tuned for details...

From an ESTA media release:

Principals underscored the vital need for the innovative measure to help fund the MTA's recently released 2008 - 2013 Capital Plan. The $29.5 billion dollar program recently submitted to the legislature as required under congestion pricing legislation relies on $4.5 billion in bonding capacity over the next five years to expand travel options in all five boroughs and the region's suburbs.

ESTA principals in Albany include: Chris Ward, Managing Director, General Contractors Association; Kate Slevin, Executive Director, Tri-State Transportation Campaign; Chris Jones, Vice President of Research, Regional Plan Association; Jim Melius, New York State Laborer's Union, Rich Kassel, Senior Attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council; Bill Henderson, Executive Director, Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA; and Eric Alexander, Executive Director, Vision Long Island.

Efforts will continue next Tuesday, when busloads of pricing advocates will head to the capital. Buses will depart at 6:15 a.m. from the Central Labor Council at 31 W. 15th St. More info here and here. RSVP ASAP.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer has been caught on a federal wiretap arranging to meet with a high-priced prostitute at a Washington hotel last month, according to a person briefed on the federal investigation.

The wiretap recording, made during an investigation of a prostitution ring called Emperors Club VIP, captured a man identified as Client 9 on a telephone call confirming plans to have a woman travel from New York to Washington, where he had reserved a room. The person briefed on the case identified Mr. Spitzer as Client 9.

The governor learned that he had been implicated in the prostitution probe when a federal official contacted his staff last Friday, according to the person briefed on the case.

The governor informed his top aides Sunday night and this morning of his involvement. He canceled his public events today and scheduled an announcement for this afternoon after inquiries from the Times.

Spitzer's brief announcement, delivered around 3:15 p.m., expressed remorse for betraying the trust of his family and the public, but did not acknowledge any involvement in prostitution. Nor did the governor immediately resign, as some pundits speculated.

The implications here extend far beyond the livable streets corner of the universe, obviously, but since it's our beat, consider this an open thread to discuss the potential fallout. Item one: congestion pricing.

According to the Sun, Governor Eliot Spitzer's office is drafting a congestion pricing bill, while legislators who have remained cool to pricing are preparing to deal on everything from bus routes to pay raises (for themselves). Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver wants "some form of a rebate for lower-income motorists" who drive into the pricing zone, along with an additional toll for New Jersey drivers crossing the Hudson. Members of the City Council, which must sign off on the plan before it goes to Albany, are also asking Mayor Bloomberg to work in an extra Jersey fee, or else gain a pledge of additional transit funds from the Port Authority.

Bloomberg irked Albany Democrats when he recently made a hefty half-million dollar donation to the Republican cause, then justified the move yesterday by saying that the Assembly and the governor have not stepped up for the city -- an injury-insult combo some say will hurt the mayor's agenda, and especially congestion pricing. As if daring Dems to take the low road, the mayor brushed off such talk.

"Think about what you're saying," he said. "You're saying that those decisions are made based on politics rather than what's right for the city. We certainly need congestion pricing, and it would be an outrage. Just for anybody to suggest that that's the basis on which they're going to make decisions, or that others would make a decision, I find reprehensible."

Surveying the long month ahead, a Monday Crain's editorial said that, with Bloomberg's presidential flight of fancy finally over, a win on congestion pricing is crucial for the mayor to remain relevant.

While both proponents and opponents have jiggered polls to support their cause, it is clear there is no public groundswell to impose a steep fee for driving in Manhattan. The qualified support of [Comptroller William] Thompson and [Council Speaker Christine] Quinn could be at risk as they take their own reading of public sentiment as they prepare for the 2009 race.

Suburban legislators remain overwhelmingly against the plan. Democratic Assembly members will be putting pressure on Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver not to back the mayor. Republican senators from Long Island, desperate to turn back Democratic challengers this November, have every reason to stand against the mayor.

It will take an aggressive effort by the mayor to push through congestion pricing. Much is at stake for him as well as for the city.

This almost daily journey of mine up to Columbia, where I've been going a lot lately to research a book, was anecdotal confirmation of what any serious study would probably show you: the city's transit system, while packed at rush hour, has considerable capacity in the off-peak hours.

While I enjoyed my ease in finding a seat, for the city and for its citizens it would be better if the subway lines were more crowded during non-rush hours. The city's transit lines are one of its more expensive and valuable pieces of infrastructure. Having more riders means that the taxpayers, who, lest we forget, ultimately own the subway, are getting more value out of this publicly owned piece of infrastructure.

There's an easy way to do this and that's to substantially lower the cost of an Unlimited Ride MetroCard so that most residents buy them. This is a far more effective way of encouraging off-peak ridership than lower-cost single fares at off-peak hours, which has also been discussed.

Economists talk about the elasticity of purchases, meaning how price sensitive a purchase is. Commuting to work is very inelastic because most people have to get to work and they will pay what they have to to get there. Sure, in the long run they may move to a different neighborhood if commuting costs are too high, but they won't change habits much on a daily basis.

Not so with more optional trips. If you are thinking of stopping for a book on the way home, or trying out a new place for lunch, or even sunbathing in a park, then an extra $2 or even $1 will be a significant deterrent. This is a very elastic commodity. If you have an Unlimited Ride MetroCard, then the cost of an additional trip, once you have committed the "sunk cost," is zero. That's a good thing for citizens' quality of life, and a good thing for the economic health of the city.

In just a few weeks, on March 2, we will all be paying more for those unlimited ride cards. A monthly pass, for example, will rise to $81, up from $76. The law of supply and demand being what it is, this means that fewer people will buy Unlimited Ride MetroCards than otherwise would have, and thus fewer people will use the subways.

This rise in price came out of the push earlier this year by MTA CEO Elliot Sander to raise base fares, and the campaign ended exactly the wrong way. Under pressure from Governor Spitzer, the MTA ended up keeping the base fare the same and raising the price of the unlimited ride cards. For some reason, this is more politically palatable.

I have an alternate policy suggestion for next year: let's drop the price of a monthly Unlimited Ride MetroCard to a breathtakingly low $30. Meanwhile, let's raise the price of an individual fare to $3. This would push most people to buy the unlimited ride cards, leaving the individual tickets for the tourists and out-of-towners, who are less price conscious and whose money we should be seeking to extract anyway.

Someone about now might be asking what all this has to do with street life. A lot, actually. As we walk around our favored part of the city, it's easy to forget that an essential part of being able to sip a coffee at a café or stroll along a shopping strip is the thundering tracks underneath the sidewalk. They enable people to live densely, without cars and their necessary parking spaces, and so create the possibility of having many people per square foot of sidewalk, which is in the final analysis the essential component of a livable street. The transit system lubricates street life.

Some transit expert could determine how lowering the cost of the unlimited pass while raising the single fare would impact MTA finances. Such a move might increase the gap between revenue and expenses, and thus increase the need for public funding. But even if that were the case, the city and state should fill any gap, and the public should demand they do so. We accept higher fares with a grudging stoicism, not fully realizing that this our transit system, publicly owned, built and now operated. (We can leave for another day the common misperception that the transit system was originally private. It wasn't. See my essay here for info on this.)

Higher tax revenues from increased business activity might even make up for any additional necessary funding of the MTA. The main point though, is that this is our transit system. We should start acting like it in our policies.

Photo: petra jane/Flickr

During his State of the State address, Governor Spitzer claimed that his administration is "turning Stewart Airport into an economic engine for the Hudson Valley and an environmental model for the world: the very first carbon-negative airport." In this morning's New York Times, we see the Port Authority, touting SIA as an air congestion reliever for metro NYC, making similar claims about the airport's green credentials.

Though there is talk of "terminals, baggage equipment, offices, stores and restaurants that do not produce greenhouse gas emissions," and even "produce or support enough green energy to begin to offset the emissions generated by the planes," the one attraction to be confirmed so far is ease of parking:

''Stewart can be kind of a beacon for a lot of things,'' said Anthony Shorris, executive director of the Port Authority, which has a 93-year lease on Stewart and runs the other three airports. ''An anchor for growth in the Hudson Valley, a major reliever of the other airports, a cargo and job-generating facility for a new economic growth pattern, and a demonstration of the potential for sustainable development in aviation.''

Change is already unmistakable: A new exit off Interstate 84 and wide new access roads now lead to the airport. A 350-space parking lot went up in three weeks and new chairs abound in the baggage claim area.

Shorris foresees 3 million annual passengers using Stewart within a few years. The attractions will include an easy trip to the airport, plenty of parking, comfortable terminals and flights taking off on schedule, he said.

Dan Hurwitz, a 60-year-old math teacher at Skidmore College, recently drove 100 miles to Stewart from his home in Saratoga Springs because a flight to Sarasota, Fla., was cheaper from Stewart than from the Albany airport closer to his home.

''Parking was really easy in the credit-card lot,'' he said. ''They told me to be here two hours early but everything's fast. I could have come an hour later.''

The Daily News reports:

State and city officials are hashing out a plan to ensure congestion pricing money pays for mass transit upgrades -- and mass transit upgrades only, sources said Wednesday.

Under the developing plan, net proceeds from new tolls for motorists entering a large section of Manhattan would be put in a "lock box" administered by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, sources in City Hall and Gov. Spitzer's office said.

The fund could only be used for transit projects that meet specific criteria, which would be spelled out by state legislation, sources said.

A member of Gov. Spitzer's administration confirmed that Spitzer will include the creation of the MTA account as a line-item in the proposed budget he unveils next week.

At a Congestion Mitigation Commission hearing yesterday at Hunter College (which saw the notable emergence of a pro-pricing coalition of advocates for low-income transit customers), Regional Plan Association President Bob Yaro testified that similar measures have successfully earmarked transit funds for decades.

The MTA's revenues at their bridge and tunnels in excess of operating costs is guaranteed by formula set by the State Legislature for use by the MTA for transit since 1968. Taxes such as the mortgage recording tax, petroleum business tax, corporate franchise tax and sales tax have also been reliably dedicated to transit since the early 1980s. It should not be difficult to establish a mechanism for congestion pricing revenue that would do the same, while requiring the use of the funds by the MTA on the projects agreed to by the MTA and the City.

Yaro also rebutted opponents' claims that the Traffic Commission's alternative pricing plan is worse than the Mayor's because it gives Manhattanites a free ride. Yaro said:

The inclusion of increased metered parking rates and a taxi surcharge within the zone, as well as the elimination of the resident park tax exemption [in the Alternative Plan] ensure that residents of the charging zone pay their share.

As key arguments against pricing are dismantled, and as the MTA and its working-class ridership finally find their collective voice, congestion pricing's impact on neighborhoods just outside the zone remains a focus of the vocal opposition.

Studies of London's congestion pricing plan showed "no adverse impact" or major parking problems on the outskirts of the congestion pricing zone. The Department of Transportation is responding to the park-and-ride concern by putting big resources into a second round of citywide neighborhood parking workshops starting next week. And, of course, Mayor Bloomberg recently announced a major crackdown on government employee parking placard abuse.

The question is whether any of that will be enough for legislators like State Senator George Onorato, who rallied a recent town hall meeting in Astoria, Queens with the cry, "We would be the parking lot for all the Long Island commuters."

Of course, this isn't helping either.

The Daily News, which has pounded the transit agency with its "Halt the Hike" series ("Even as the MTA is poised to stick straphangers with a fat fare hike, Chief Executive Lee Sander went shopping for a new necktie yesterday"), called the fare increase "the great train robbery of 2007," and characterized Sander and new Chairman H. Dale Hemmerdinger as puppets of Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Spitzer.

There was a time when MTA bosses were independent, standup people who represented the riders, even if only in losing battles with governors, Legislatures and mayors. Men like Dick Ravitch and Peter Kalikow come to mind.

At this point in their relatively young tenures, Hemmerdinger and Sander pale in comparison.

They are order takers, dictated to by Spitzer and Bloomberg, who have assumed full personal ownership of this fare hike.

New MetroCards should come bearing photographs of the governor and the mayor, like on wanted posters, including their records.

Also in the News, Gene Russianoff of the Straphangers Campaign, while critical of the hikes, says transit customers have reason for hope in the promises made by Spitzer and other pols, including Assembly Member Richard Brodsky, that more state aid is forthcoming. Russianoff also thinks further hikes will be politically infeasible for the next several years.

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign, for one, believes the hike will be used against the MTA come budget time, and sees it as a broader failure of the MTA and elected officials to advance a pro-transit agenda. Calling yesterday a "Sad Day for Transit Riders," TSTC's Kate Slevin writes:

Overall, by approving the hike and the proposed fare and toll plan today, Governor Spitzer and the MTA missed out on a number of key opportunities. First, they missed an opportunity to win support from transit riders who feel the pressure of crowded trains, slow buses, and an increasingly expensive region. Second, they missed out on a chance to let vocal state legislators put their money where their mouth is and produce more state transit aid. Third, they missed an opportunity to connect the transit funding debate with the Traffic Mitigation Commission's recommendations to be released in January. Fourth, the MTA failed, as it has in the past (see MTR #s 425, 401, 237, and others), to use the toll hike as an opportunity to bring its tolling structure and facilities into the 21st century with things like variable tolling and non-stop tolls.

Finally, the MTA and Governor Spitzer failed to connect the fare and toll proposal with their own efforts to promote sustainability. The MTA established a top-notch Sustainability Commission in September to help create an agency "master plan" to reduce the agency's ecological footprint. But the agency's toll proposal punishes most transit riders more than most drivers - under the plan EZ Pass users (which account for 75% of all crossings) will pay only 3.8% more while transit fares for most riders will increase more than that. Last time we checked, promoting transit use over driving is an vital part of "sustainability."

The governor must prevent next year's state budget from being a carbon copy of the budgets offered by his predecessor, which drove the Metropolitan Transportation Authority more deeply into debt than any transit system in U.S. history. But he can only do this if the MTA first commits to delaying all proposed fare hikes until after the 2008 state budget is put to bed in April.

Most straphangers will remember the chants of elected officials railing helplessly against the MTA every time the authority proposed to raise fares or cut service. What they may not remember is that, year after year, the Pataki administration submitted - and the Legislature passed - budgets that decimated the MTA's funding.

In 1982, the MTA started a series of five-year capital programs to restore our regional transit system to a state of good repair. We are now enjoying the fruits of these investments: a system that is in dramatically better shape than it was at the beginning of the 1980s, with ridership at a 35-year high. But the state did not maintain its commitment. It cut its share of the system's capital program from 19.6% in the MTA's 1982-86 plan, to 10.8% in the 1987-91 plan, to less than 1% during calendar years 1992 through 1999. The state provided zero direct funding for the 2000-04 capital plan.

That abandonment forced the authority to steadily increase its reliance on debt to finance repairs and improvements. Over 60% of the 2000-04 plan was financed with debt, up from about 40% for the previous plan.

As a result, the MTA is now "in hock" for $23 billion, Russianoff and Schneiderman write. They say freezing the base fare at $2 is "a first step" toward shifting reliance from MTA customers to the state for support.

Spitzer has a lot on his plate, but ending Albany's systemic abuse of our 7.5 million straphangers should be at or near the top of the pile. He must work with the Legislature and the MTA board, both to avoid a fare hike in 2008 and to set a new agenda for our state's mass transit program - an agenda that breaks with the unsustainable and inexcusable policies of the last 12 years.

Photo: peterkreder/Flickr

Assemblyman Richard Brodsky says the move was a good first step, but that he wants other fare increases -- including tolls -- delayed as well.

“We welcome the governor’s intervention, but there’s been no change in the Pataki policies that starved the MTA in the first place, so we’re not quitting,” Brodsky said. “I’m not sure why they’re saving the case fare and making unlimited users pay more…I think a lot of this is unclear in terms of its impact on riders.”

Benjamin also notes the sudden nature of today's presser, and how it may hinder -- initially, at least -- a solution agreeable to all parties.

Still, in a subsequent post, TDP finds Spitzer the recipient of more praise than he has enjoyed since the heady days following his inauguration (remember the "man crush"?).

Says Shelly Silver:

“Governor Spitzer and I, along with my Assembly Majority colleagues from the metropolitan area, agree that the $2 fare should be saved. The Governor this morning also acknowledged something that I have been saying all along – that there is a need for additional state resources for the MTA. I will continue to fight for those additional resources, so that there is no added burden on straphangers.”

Now let's hear it for mom and apple pie!

Mr. Spitzer said it was possible to keep the base fare at $2 through 2009 — and avoid an increase to $2.25, as the authority proposed for early next year — because the authority had suddenly identified an additional $220 million in unforeseen revenue. The $220 million includes, Mr. Spitzer said, $60 million from increased ridership, $60 million from higher-than-anticipated real estate tax revenues, $60 million in savings and $40 million in lower-than-expected debt service costs.

“We have come to the conclusion that the entirety of that $220 million should be used to mitigate any need for a fare increase,” Mr. Spitzer said in a morning news conference at his Midtown office. But he quickly made it clear that he was referring only to the base fare.

In reality, only a small fraction of riders pay the full $2 fare. Most commuters buy the 7-day or 30-day unlimited-ride MetroCards, and many tourists use the one-day FunPass. The chief executive of the authority, Elliot G. Sander, said that its financial staff needed to do a new set of calculations to determine how the cost of unlimited-rides cards — along with commuter rail fares and bridge and tunnel tolls — would change under the plan.

But Mr. Spitzer said he expected that any increases on those fares and tolls would be “significantly reduced” from what the authority had originally envisioned.

So, as City Room commenters have pointed out, while one-shot fares -- largely paid by out-of-towners -- should remain the same for the time being, regular transit customers could still see an increase, albeit a "significantly reduced" one.

And again, it appears that neither Spitzer nor MTA chief Lee Sander took the opportunity to cite congestion pricing as a boon to the city's transit system.

The new poll also shows that a majority of voters still oppose the idea of congestion pricing by a margin of 61 to 33. Support for Mayor Bloomberg's plan seems to be falling off in Manhattan, in particular. City Room notes: "Manhattan voters, who supported congestion pricing by a margin of 54 percent to 36 percent in Quinnipiac’s last such poll, in August, are just about evenly split, with 46 percent supporting it and 47 percent opposed."

The other boroughs break down like this:

• 65 - 29 percent in Queens;
• 63 - 31 percent in Brooklyn;
• 70 - 24 percent in The Bronx;
• 63 - 34 percent in Staten Island.

While the news is sure to be spun by opponents as a definitive upsurge in opposition, last August's Q-Poll came in at 57 to 36 -- essentially the same as today's when you factor in the 3 percent margin of error. And, as always, it is worth noting that prior to the implementation of Stockholm and London's congestion pricing systems, polls showed opposition as high as 80 percent. After the implementation of both of those cities' congestion pricing systems, public sentiment turned around almost immediately as people enjoyed the benefits of reduced traffic.

Still, advocates would be wise not to pretend that these poll numbers are good news. Rather, we ought to be asking why it is that support is dwindling for a transportation policy that would benefit 95 percent of New York City workers who commute into the Central Business District. Aside from the fact that car culture is absurdly powerful and imposing a new fee on New Yorkers is always going to be a tough sell, I've got some ideas:

• The MTA's refusal to link congestion pricing to fare hikes has been devastating. Poll after poll shows New York City voters would support congestion pricing if it were used to prevent bus and subway fare hikes. The MTA, however, insists on keeping the fare and toll hike discussion on a completely separate track from Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan. Congestion pricing could provide the MTA with a steady source of revenue and bonding for decades. It's the most important transportation policy reform since the formation of the MTA itself in 1968. The MTA needs to snap out of its bureaucratic inertia, look beyond its short-term bottom-line and make the connection.
  
• City Hall's political operation is nowhere to be found. New York City has $300+ million in immediate bus improvements hanging by a thread. If congestion pricing is rejected, that federal money is gone. You'd think that the powerful Transit Workers Union and a few hundred thousand outer borough bus riders would be interested and could be organized to rally support for the Mayor's plan. But that's a lot of work and no one is doing it. To the contrary, Mayor Bloomberg has been antagonizing the transit workers lately. These guys could be congestion pricing's best political foot soldiers but they're standing on the sidelines.
  
• Institutional dysfunction in Albany makes good policy-making virtually impossible. So, where has Governor Spitzer been on this issue anyway? Oh, right, when not squandering his own political capital he's been trapped in the StoneZone, busy defending himself from Senate Leader Joe Bruno's political goon squad and freak show. Meanwhile, the cowardice among state legislators representing districts with low rates of car ownership, crushing traffic congestion and heavy transit dependence is simply staggering. Why is it that not a single state legislator from Lower Manhattan or Downtown Brooklyn has been willing to stand up and say that Mayor Bloomberg's pilot project is, at the very least, worth a try? How has the New York City Assembly delegation ceded transportation reform leadership to Richard Brodsky, an Assemblyman from the car-dependent suburbs? Read former State Senator Seymour Lachman's book, "Three Men in a Room" for some answers to these questions. Albany needs to be blown up and rebuilt. When is the next Constitutional Convention again?
  

Though reporters weren't invited, Streetsblog managed to get a stringer into this morning's On-and-Off-the-Record transportation policy talk with Congressman Anthony Weiner at Commerce Bank in Midtown.

During the hour-long Q&A hosted by Edward Isaac-Dovere of City Hall News, Weiner hit on familiar themes:

• Something needs to be done about traffic but the mayor's plan is too costly.
• Though low and middle income New Yorkers overwhelmingly travel into Manhattan via transit, Weiner pounded away at the idea that congestion pricing is unfair to the city's middle class and would hit city residents harder than suburban commuters.
• Rather than imposing a fee to drive into Manhattan's Central Business District, he would opt for improved transit and ferry service, higher truck tolls and better enforcement of blocking-the-box regulations.
• He says that he would pay for these improvements with a federal gas tax increase.
  

While Weiner believes, "The Mayor got the solution wrong," he praised Bloomberg for being "innovative" and appeared to back off a bit from total opposition to pricing.

"There is a version of congestion pricing that will work," Weiner said. "My plan has 'congestion pricing' by increasing tolls and increasing parking fees." Unfortunately, this is probably not a version of congestion pricing for which the federal government will grant $354.5 million in start-up funds.

About 75 people showed up to the breakfast event including Queens Civic Congress president Corey Bearak, Northern Manhattan Council member Robert Jackson, the Durst Organization's Jordan Barowitz and an assortment of advocacy people from Transportation Alternatives, Tri-State Transportation Campaign and the newly-formed SWIM Coalition.

The event started with "on-the-record" questions from Isaac-Dovere and "off-the-record" questions from audience members. Here, in reporter's notebook format, are a bunch of Weiner's responses to both sets of questions:

• When asked about his theory that the Bloomberg Administration has purposely ordered the NYPD not to enforce traffic regulations to aid the passage of its congestion pricing plan, he ducked the question.

• We need the Cross-Harbor Freight Tunnel.
• If we had as many cops enforcing the blocking-the-box rules as we did during the Koch years our congestion problems would be solved. Likewise, we need a mass education campaign to change people's behavior like the pooper scooper law.
  
• He said that he has offered the City $19 million in federal funds for ferries but the City has not taken it.
• Asked how he would fund his transit initiatives, Weiner proposed raising the national gas tax to fund transit.
• The asthma problem is not in Midtown. It is in East New York, Brownsville by the Belt Parkway. Why aren't we looking at reducing the traffic there with ferry transit?
• Asked about Long Island City turning into a parking lot because of congestion pricing, Weiner said that the City needs to provide ferry service. We need to provide parking in the boroughs, not in Manhattan. There should be park and rides close to highways. We need to reduce parking because it causes traffic.
• "Congestion pricing hits NYC residents harder that suburban ones." Weiner shared an anecdote in which a Connecticut congressman supports $8 charge because, he says, "My constituents would pay $80 to have the riff raff from your district off the streets." Is this $8 charge really going to deter behavior of the driving in with their SUVs, Weiner asks.
• "The Congestion Commission can't be a rubber stamp for the Mayor's proposal"
• He wants assurances that pricing revenue will benefit NYC. Joe Bruno will see that money and want some for Rensselaer county.
• New York City needs to push against Albany and the unelected authorities and agencies. "We should every day declare a declaration of independence from Albany."
• The SMART fund won't work. How will the Mayor know that the MTA will build what it promises to build?
• Congestion pricing will lead to the federal government to defund New York City because they'll see that we're getting the money from another source.
• He incorrectly stated that "Ninety percent of carbon emissions in NYC are from existing buildings." The real number is 79 percent according to the City's Long-Term Planning and Sustainability office.
• "Advocates for the Mayor's plan are buying into the Bush doctrine of governing: If you want something, then you should tax yourself to pay for it."
• Congestion pricing has divided the coalition around environmental activism. This plan pits people against each other, pits neighborhoods against each other.
• When asked about Spitzer's undocumented immigrant drivers license scheme, Weiner quickly said that he thinks we really need it but that it's politically unpopular. [Sounds like congestion pricing, no?]

Lawmakers and transit advocates made the announcement today at City Hall.

City Room reports:

If the authority holds off until next April, it would give Gov. Eliot Spitzer and the Legislature “a chance to provide additional funds needed in order to avoid a fare increase,” the lawmakers and advocates wrote in their letter.

“Fare increases are a last resort,” said Assemblyman Richard L. Brodsky, a Westchester Democrat. “After 12 years of neglect under the Pataki administration, we want to work with the M.T.A., the city and state governments to change the failed policies of the past.”

The letter said: “There are many strong reasons for increasing government aid to the M.T.A. There has been no permanent new state operating aid to M.T.A. New York City Transit in at least a dozen years.”

The letter was signed by New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson Jr. and 22 Assembly members: Adam Bradley, James F. Brennan, Richard L. Brodsky, Kevin A. Cahill, William Colton, Ruben Diaz Jr., Richard N. Gottfried, Michael N. Gianaris, Carl E. Heastie, Hakeem S. Jeffries, Janele Hyre-Spencer, Micah Z. Kellner, David G. McDonough, Joan L. Millman, Mike Spano, Catherine T. Nolan, Daniel J. O’Donnell, N. Nick Perry, Linda B. Rosenthal, Robert K. Sweeney, Harvey Weisenberg and Keith L. T. Wright.

Whether legislators can stop focusing on one another long enough to advance a substantive public policy initiative (with or without the use of medication) remains to be seen.

Class-cutting school kids in Bushwick and the South Bronx, fear not. The clipboard-wielding women standing outside your school aren't looking to bust you, they're trying to help you breathe. As reported in last week's New Yorker Talk of the Town:

The women belong to a nonprofit group called the Asthma Free School Zone, which, for the past year, has been holding covert stakeouts of schools around the city to aid a campaign against vehicle idling. New York City prohibits idling for spurts of longer than three minutes (the fine is from three hundred and fifty to two thousand dollars), though the law is rarely enforced. In 2004, after receiving a tip from the A.F.S.Z., Eliot Spitzer, who was the attorney general at the time, sued several school-bus companies for breaking the rule, and last month, as governor, Spitzer signed a ban on all bus idling in school zones. "In Switzerland you have to turn your engine off if you're more than four cars behind the stoplight," Rebecca Kalin, the group's founder, said the other day. "Idling is rude there. It's like burping-you just don't do it."

Kalin had arrived at P.S. 274 a little before two o'clock, with three colleagues: Lori Bukiewicz, a public-health worker; Jen Richmond-Bryant, an assistant professor at Hunter College (courses: Ventilation, Indoor and Outdoor Air Quality); and Bin-Yun Zheng, the group's assistant. When no one was looking, they wheeled out a small gray cabinet with a plastic tube sticking out of the top. The cabinet emitted a low buzzing noise, and it contained a car battery, two Sidepaks-used to gauge air quality by counting small particles called PM2.5-and an instrument called an Aethelometer, which measures black carbon.

…In an hour and a half, there had been twelve idlers: seven cars, one truck, and four school buses. The PM2.5 reading was on the high side.

Next month, A.F.S.Z. will launch a public awareness campaign in New York and Kalin, Bukiewicz, and Richmond-Bryant will give presentations on their recent air sampling activities at the American Public Health Conference in Washington, DC.

No word yet on whether Bronx State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. will demand that A.S.F.Z. cease and desist until an Environmental Impact Statement can be conducted to determine whether school bus exhaust is, in fact, harmful to children. 

Photo: Southern Alliance for Clean Energy School Bus Air Quality Monitoring Project

Mayor Michael Bloomberg today joined Governor Eliot Spitzer, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith, Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco, and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn to announce appointments to the New York City Traffic Mitigation Congestion Commission established by the Governor and Legislature as part of the congestion pricing legislation.

Mayor Bloomberg appointed three people to the commission: Gene Russianoff from the New York Public Interest Research Group and the Straphangers Campaign, New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan and civil rights attorney and Executive Director of UPROSE Elizabeth Yeampierre.

“Today we are continuing to move forward and work with our partners in State government and in the Council to relieve congestion in New York City,” said Mayor Bloomberg.  “Together, we’ll reduce traffic, improve New Yorkers’ health and strengthen the City’s economy.”

Governor Spitzer’s appointments include former First Deputy Mayor Marc Shaw, Port Authority Executive Director Anthony Shorris, and Metropolitan Transportation Commission Executive Director and CEO Elliot “Lee” Sander.  Mr. Shaw will be nominated to be the head of the commission. 

Governor Spitzer said, “Putting the congestion pricing commission in place is an important step towards creating a healthier, cleaner environment for our children and generations to come.   The Commission has a vital task to ensure the ability of New York City’s continued growth, and do so in an environmentally responsible manner.  My nominees all have extensive transportation and public policy experience that will ensure that the congestion pricing plan is well thought out in terms of the impact on the transportation system, the economy, and the environment of the City of New York.  My thanks go to the Mayor and his staff for their hard work on this crucial issue.”

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver appointed Assemblyman Herman “Denny” Farrell, Jr., Assemblyman Richard L. Brodsky, and Assemblywoman Vivian E. Cook. 

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said, “The traffic congestion mitigation legislation signed into law by the Governor last month outlines a process for a thoughtful and in-depth discussion of the most effective means to address traffic congestion and related health and environmental issues. I am pleased with the nomination of Marc Shaw to head this effort. His demonstrated experience and ability to build consensus on difficult issues will be a great asset to this Commission.”

Senator Bruno appointed New York City Central Labor Council President Gary LaBarbera, SUNY Chairman Thomas F. Egan and Nassau County Council Chamber of Commerce President Richard Bivone to commission.

“We are pleased to join Mayor Bloomberg and others in announcing the Senate Majority’s appointments to the New York City Traffic Congestion Mitigation Commission.  By naming the members of this important commission, we have taken another step forward in our efforts to make New York a national leader in reducing traffic congestion, modernizing mass transit and improving the quality of the air we breathe,” Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno said.

Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith appointed Counsel and Project Director of Arverne By the Sea, Gerard Romski, to the Commission.

“Mr. Romski will be a strong asset for members of the Senate Democratic Conference in working to address New York City's long-term transportation needs,” Senator Smith said. “His appreciation of public transit's role in that process as well as his open mind about the structure of any traffic congestion mitigation plan will serve our Conference well.”

Assembly Minority Leader Jim Tedisco appointed Environmental Defense New York Regional Director Andy Darrell to the Commission.

“Andy Darrell’s track record on environmental and health-related issues is second to none,” said Assembly Republican Leader Jim Tedisco. “His input and ideas will be invaluable as we look for answers to New York City’s traffic congestion problems. I am honored to appoint him to this crucial commission.”

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has appointed Drum Major Institute Executive Director Andrea Batista Schlesinger, Greater Allen Cathedral CFO Edwin Reed and Partnership for New York City President and CEO Kathryn Wylde to the Commission.

“New York City anticipates adding nearly one million new residents over the next two decades, and we must have a forward-looking plan in place to handle such substantial growth,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “We are confident that the Commission will carefully consider the different proposals and find a responsible and impartial solution to reduce traffic congestion in our City. The Council’s appointees are extremely familiar with moving and shaping public policy in our diverse communities.  They bring a broad range of experience that will enable the Commission to come up with a plan to make New York a cleaner, greener, more livable city.”

 

Biographies of Commission Members:

Richard Bivone is the President of the Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce and the President and Founder of RMB Drafting Services, the largest research/drafting/expediting firm on Long Island.  Richard played a key role in forming the Nassau Business and Community and Planning Coalition (NBCPC), a unique partnership between the Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce, the Nassau Village Officials Association, Vision Long Island, and environmental and civic groups.  He is a retired member of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY).

Assemblyman Richard L. Brodsky represents the 92nd Assembly District. Brodsky currently serves as Chairman of the Standing Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, which oversees the state’s public and private corporations. In addition to his Committee Chairmanship, Assemblyman Brodsky has also introduced a number of proposals to reform state government through constitutional change.

Assemblywoman Vivian E. Cook began her civic role more than 30 years ago when the Kennedy Airport and airport expansion threatened her community. Cook, who represents the 32nd Assembly District, has been an activist for community improvement. Working tirelessly to secure funding for various building and reconstruction programs, Cook has helped develop community housing programs that provide residents with affordable homes. Assemblywoman Cook currently serves as Assistant Majority Leader.

Andy Darrell is Director of the Living Cities program at Environmental Defense, focused on practical, market-based solutions for climate change and health in major cities.  He also serves as New York Regional Director.  He is a member of Mayor Bloomberg’s Sustainability Advisory Board, convened in 2006 to help create a new sustainability plan.  Previously, he helped form two organizations instrumental in revitalizing abandoned New York City waterfronts.  After law school, he worked at Davis Polk and Wardwell, an international law firm, and as a consultant on financing clean energy projects.  He received a JD (Law Review) from the University of Virginia and a Master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.  He is a trustee of the Van Alen Institute, the New York League of Voters Conservation Voters Education Fund, and New York City’s International House.

Thomas F. Egan was appointed Chairman of the State University of New York Board of Trustees on February 8, 1996, and a member and Vice Chairman on June 27, 1995.  A lawyer and banker, he has spent over 30 years in the securities industry, with extensive experience in capital market finance. Mr. Egan is a managing director at Citigroup Global Markets in New York City.  Previously, Mr. Egan was a principal in Langdon P. Cook & Company, Inc., for twelve years and a staff attorney with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for three years. Mr. Egan is the past chairman of the Foundation for the New York United Hospital Medical Center and active in civic affairs. He has also served as a member of the board of directors of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, a trustee of Marymount College, and member of the Port Chester Village Planning Commission.

Assemblyman Herman “Denny” Farrell, Jr. was elected to the State Assembly in 1974 from a district that encompasses West Harlem, Washington Heights and Inwood. Farrell serves as chair of the Committee on Ways and Means and is a member of the Committee on Rules. Prior to his appointment to Ways and Means, Farrell was Chair of the Committee on Banks, where he successfully secured passage of the Omnibus Consumer Protection and Banking Legislation Act.

Gary LaBarbera is the President of the New York City Central Labor Council and has nearly 25 years of progressive labor leadership with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, including currently serving as Joint Council 16 President, which represents over 100,000 members in the New York Metropolitan area. He also serves as a Vice President for the New York State AFL-CIO, the Long Island Federation of Labor AFL-CIO, and the New York State Building and Construction Trades Council.

Edwin C. Reed is the Chief Financial Officer at the Greater Allen Cathedral of New York and has been serving in this capacity since 1995. He has previously served on the Board of Directors of the New York Bank from 2001 to 2003. The Allen organization provides services such as rehabilitating and building affordable housing, developing and managing 14 commercial stores, operating a community service center, and providing quality education for up to 500 students.  Previously, Reverend Reed was the Executive Staff Director for Congressman Floyd Flake of New York. Reverend Reed has served as: Chairman, Jamaica Business Resource Center; Treasurer, Outreach Development Corporation; Vice Chairperson and Member of the Board of Directors, Hofstra University; Member of Wheelchair Charities; Co-Chairperson, New York Housing Conference; Member, Chase Community Advisory Board; Member, Federal Home Loan Bank of New York Affordable Housing Advisory Council; and Member, Allen Christian School, Allen Transportation, Allen Women's Resource Center and Allen Housing Development Corporations. Reverend Reed formerly served as Chairman of the Queens County Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission.

Gerard Romski is a former partner at the law firm Ross and Cohen, LLP, he currently serves as Counsel and Project Executive for one of New York City's largest mixed-use development projects, Arverne by the Sea, incorporating more than 2,300 new housing units in Queens.  A strong advocate for public transit investment, Mr. Romski has also served as the Assistant Division Chief in the Real Estate Litigation Division of the New York City Corporation Counsel's office where he represented the City in real estate matters.

Gene Russianoff has been mass transit and government reform advocate for the New York Public Interest Research Group, a student-directed social change organization, since 1978. Mr. Russianoff is a staff attorney for NYPIRG's Straphangers Campaign.  His efforts have helped to win unlimited-ride transit passes and free subway-to-bus transfers; increased transit service; creation of independent transit safety and management watchdog agencies; $53 billion in funds to rebuild the subway and bus system since 1982; and rider and labor representatives on the MTA Board of Directors.   New York 1 News named Russianoff a “New Yorker of the Year” in 1997 for coalition work to win unlimited-ride Metro-cards.  Russianoff is the author of more than 100 reports on transit service.
 
Janette Sadik-Khan was appointed Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation by the Mayor in April.  Prior to her appointment, she was a Senior Vice President of Parsons Brinckerhoff, a leading international engineering firm. Commissioner Sadik-Khan is nationally recognized for her expertise in innovative finance, public policy development and transportation issues - knowledge gained in over 15 years of experience at the federal, state and local level.  Before joining Parsons Brinckerhoff, she was Deputy Administrator at the U.S. Department of Transportation.

As Chief Financial Officer, she managed the agency's $4 billion annual capital construction budget and was responsible for developing an innovative finance program which provided localities with increased funding and regulatory flexibility. She also served as Director of the Office of Policy where she initiated the FTA’s Art in Transit program to expand federal funding for art and design in transit facilities and implemented new criteria to improve the ways in which the benefits of transit capital projects were quantified.

Elliot “Lee” Sander, Executive Director and CEO of the MTA, has served as a Corporate Senior Vice President at DMJM Harris, a leading transportation engineering firm, and as Director of the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University. Sander is also the founder and co-chairman of the Empire State Transportation Alliance, and he is a Commissioner on the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission.  He graduated from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown.

Andrea Batista Schlesinger has led the effort to turn the Drum Major Institute, originally founded by an advisor to Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during the civil rights movement, into a progressive policy institute with national impact.  Under her leadership as Executive Director, DMI has released several important policy papers to national audiences including: Middle Class 2004: How Congress Voted, People and Politics in America's Big Cities, and From Governance to Accountability: Building Relationships that Make Schools Work. She has worked in various capacities to promote educational equity and youth empowerment. She directed a national campaign to engage college students in the discussion on the future of Social Security for the Pew Charitable Trusts, and served as Director of Public Relations of Teach for America before working as the education advisor to Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer.

Marc V. Shaw is Executive Vice President for Strategic Planning at Extell Development Company and is responsible for the overall strategic direction of the company. From 2002 to 2006, Mr. Shaw was the First Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor for Operations under Mayor Bloomberg. Prior to that he served as the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.  He also served as City Budget Director, Commissioner for the New York City Department of Finance, and Director of Finance for the New York City Council. Mr. Shaw also held a position with the New York State Senate Finance Committee.  He has been an adjunct assistant professor of Public Services at the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Services at New York University, and is currently an adjunct professor at the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University.

Anthony Ernest Shorris, Executive Director of the Port Authority, formerly served as the Director of Princeton University's Policy Research Institute at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and as Deputy Chancellor of the New York City Board of Education. He also has served as the First Deputy Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, as New York City's Commissioner of Finance, and Deputy Budget Director.

Kathryn S. Wylde is President and CEO of the Partnership for New York City, a nonprofit organization of the city's business leaders, established by David Rockefeller in 1979. The Partnership is dedicated to maintaining New York City as a center of world commerce, finance and innovation. Its public policy focus is on issues in the areas of education, infrastructure and the economy.

The Partnership’s economic development arm is the New York City Investment Fund. Wylde served as founding President and CEO of this $110 million civic fund, which was established in 1996 under the leadership of Henry R. Kravis. Wylde was also founding President and CEO of the Housing Partnership Development Corporation, serving from 1982 to 1996.   In that capacity, she was instrumental in creation of a number of pioneering initiatives in affordable housing at the local, state and national levels.   An internationally known expert in housing, economic development and urban policy, Wylde serves on a number of boards and advisory groups, including the New York State Commission to Modernize the Regulation of Financial Services, the Mayor's Sustainability Advisory Board, the Special Commission on the Future of NYS Courts, Independent Judicial Election Qualification Commission for the First Judicial District, NYC Economic Development Corporation, Research Partnership for New York City Schools, NYC Leadership Academy, Governors Island Advisory Council, the Manhattan Institute and the Biomedical Research Alliance of New York.
 
Elizabeth C. Yeampierre, a Puerto Rican civil rights attorney born and raised in New York City is Executive Director of UPROSE, Brooklyn’s oldest Latino community based organization.  In 1996, Elizabeth helped shift UPROSE’s mission to organizing, advocacy and developing intergenerational indigenous leadership through activism.  In reaching these goals, UPROSE focuses on environmental, economic and social justice.  Ms. Yeampierre is a co-founder of CURE (Communities United for Responsible Energy) and OWN (Organization of Waterfront Neighborhoods).  Ms Yeampierre serves on Mayor Bloomberg’s Sustainability and Long Term Planning Advisory Board and the US EPA National Environmental Justice Advisory Council.

The deal laid out a very specific timeline by which the process would move forward. One of the first big milestones on that timeline was today's date, August 1. That is date on which the Mayor shall "submit the traffic mitigation plan." Here is how it was laid out in the deal summary:

NYC is authorized to present and implement a detailed congestion pricing plan to address traffic congestion within a zone of severe traffic congestion in Manhattan. Such plan shall include (a) the geographic area to be covered; (b) the proposed dollar amount of any congestion pricing fee; (c) the technology to be used to implement such pricing plan; and (d) the number and scope of exemptions granted from such fee requirements. The Mayor shall submit the traffic mitigation plan by August 1, 2007.

Is the Mayor supposed to submit his plan to the 17-member commission? If so, where is the commission? Or does he just have to submit it to the State Legislature and City Council for now? Is the City still on track to meet the August 1 milestone? I've got some phone calls in to various sources. If you know what's going on, drop a line to tips@streetsblog.org or the comments section.

The 17 member congestion pricing commission is made up as follows:

3 appointees -- Mayor
3 appointees -- Governor
3 appointees -- City Council
3 appointees -- State Senate majority leader
3 appointees -- State Assembly speaker
1 appointees -- Senate minority leader
1 appointees -- Assembly minority leader

SUMMARYOF CONGESTION PRICING LEGISLATION

· NYC is authorized to present and implement a detailed congestion pricing plan to address traffic congestion within a zone of severe traffic congestion in Manhattan. Such plan shall include (a) the geographic area to be covered; (b) the proposed dollar amount of any congestion pricing fee; (c) the technology to be used to implement such pricing plan; and (d) the number and scope of exemptions granted from such fee requirements. The Mayor shall submit the traffic mitigation plan by August 1, 2007.

· NYC may not impose or collect any fee for traveling into or within designated zone unless the implementation plan has been approved by the State Legislature by March 31, 2008 and signed into law by the Governor, pursuant to a request from the Mayor that the State Legislature consider such plan where such request has been approved by the City Council.

· A NYC Traffic Congestion Mitigation Commission shall undertake a review and study of the issues related to the implementation of the plan submitted by NYC. It may also review and study other plans to reduce traffic congestion and other related health and safety issues. The Commission shall have 17 members comprised of appointees by State and City officials.

· The Commission shall conduct hearings, take testimony and review information and proposals regarding traffic congestion. It shall issue to the Governor, State Legislature, the Mayor and City Council recommendations with respect to the details of implementing the plan submitted by the Mayor and other such proposals. These recommendations shall constitute "the implementation plan". The implementation plan must provide at least the same level of traffic mitigation, as measured by the 6.3% reduction in average vehicle miles traveled, as proposed in the traffic mitigation plan submitted to US DOT on June 22, 2007.

· The Commission shall approve by a majority vote its implementation plan and submit such plan to the Governor, State Legislature, the Mayor and City Council by January 31, 2008. The State Legislature shall consider such implementation plan by March 31, 2008.

· By October 1, 2007, the MTA shall submit comments on the Mayor's plan as well as (a) a description of the additional capital needs required for implementation; (b) proposed utilization of any potential revenue derived from such plan for such capital needs; and (c) the impact of such revenue upon the authority's capital and operating budgets.

· By March 31, 2008 (an 18-month acceleration), the MTA shall submit a capital program for the period covering July 1, 2008 through December 31, 2013.

· This legislation will expire on June 30, 2012. It shall also expire if US DOT does not commit at least $250 million in funding prior to October 1, 2007, except that the expiration and repeal shall not occur if the US DOT commits at least $200 million prior to October 1, 2007 and NYC commits prior to December 31, 2007 an amount equal to the difference between $250 million and the amount committed by US DOT.

We don't have an Albany or City Hall bureau (yet), so your best sources for up-to-the-minute coverage are:

• The Daily Politics
• City Room
• The Politicker

Here is a press release from City Hall:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 18, 2007
No. 247
www.nyc.gov

STATEMENT FROM MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG ON CITY BEING AUTHORIZED TO MOVE FORWARD WITH CONGESTION PRICING:

"This agreement to move forward with congestion pricing marks a critical milestone in our efforts to make PlaNYC a reality, and to provide a better quality of life for us and for future generations of New Yorkers. By moving forward in our effort to clean our air and fight congestion, we will help our economy, improve public health and make critical improvements to our public transportation system.

"This agreement makes clear that delay was unacceptable and the need to protect our environment and fight congestion simply could not wait. We will begin immediately to prepare for the installation of needed equipment to make our traffic plan a reality.

"This agreement also creates a commission made up of representatives of our Administration, our partners in the City Council, Senate, and Assembly and from the Governor's office to review our plans for implementation. I am certain that through our work with the commission, our traffic plan will be implemented expeditiously.

"This agreement is a victory for the broad coalition of environmental and environmental justice groups, transit and public health advocates, organized labor and civic leaders who worked tirelessly for years to make real and important progress for our environment and our mass transit system. I also want to congratulate the leaders of both houses of the Legislature and the Governor for their support for this key element of PlaNYC and their commitment to moving it forward. We will continue to work together to access the federal funds that are available. Certainly there will be discussion of the details of various components of our plan, but together we have made a commitment to a greener, healthier and more livable New York."