Congestion commission to issue report

When the state’s Traffic Congestion Mitigation Commission delivers its final report and votes on its recommendation later today, Thursday, January 31, the report may yield a few surprises - even to some of its commissioners.
While sources close to the commission believe the alternative congestion pricing plan is likely to be the commission’s recommendation, multiple commission members told The Queens Courier that they won’t know what’s in the final report until they show up at MTA headquarters in Manhattan at 3 p.m. on Thursday.
The commission last met as an entire group during the public hearing held at Hunter College on Wednesday, January 16, but commission members say they have been in touch electronically as well as with the commission’s staff.
Commission member Reverend Edwin Reed, who is the CEO of Allen Development Corporation and a supporter of congestion pricing, said he wasn’t concerned about not meeting as a group.
“The commission has been very focused and diligent about its work,” he said.
However, Reed also said he was not making any plans for later in the night, indicating that he expected a long meeting. In addition, he believed the commission would continue to debate the different plans on Thursday and may make changes before voting on a final plan.
Meanwhile, State Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith’s appointee Gerard Romski said on Tuesday morning, January 29, that he had still not made up his mind whether he would vote for any of the plans.
“In regards to Queens, I’m still trying to advance that city residents can get on Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road trains for [the same fare as subways and buses],” Romski said.
The 17-member commission, which was charged with studying how to reduce congestion in Manhattan’s Central Business District (CBD), presented five options including Mayor Bloomberg’s original proposal of charging cars $8 and trucks $21 to enter Manhattan during weekdays south of 86th Street from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., in its interim report released two weeks ago.
Other proposals included installing tolls at the East River and Harlem River crossings; an alternative congestion pricing plan that would shrink the congestion zone from 86th Street to 60th Street; a license plate rationing plan limiting individual vehicular travel into the area; and a plan that increases parking taxes and rates inside the CBD.
If the commission approves a plan on January 31, the plan is sent to the city council who would have an opportunity to review it before deciding whether to pass a home rule message and send the plan to the state legislature.
The plan would likely need the legislature’s final approval by March 31 in order to qualify for federal funds to partially implement the plan.