The Ravitch Commission plan to save commuters the projected 23 percent increase in subway and bus fares is better than nothing, but not by much. The last minute offer would cap bus, subway and commuter train fare increases at 8 percent for 2009. In turn, the East River bridges would be turned over to the MTA.
Drivers will have to pay a toll to use the Brooklyn Bridge and other bridges and employers will be asked to pay a one third of 1 percent Mobility Tax that would be used by the MTA to help offset a $1.2 billion deficit.
The 23 percent increase in bus and subway fares would have been devastating, especially for riders who take the express buses. In a double whammy the fare increase would be accompanied by cuts in service. Riders would be paying more, a lot more, and getting less.
On the down side the tolls on the East River bridges would most likely be permanent as would the Mobility Tax. Although the plan is to tax the employers, rest assured that the money will be coming out of the workers’ pockets. To avoid traffic jams on the East River bridges, the tolls will be collected through easy pass or through letters sent to the driver’s home based on the license plate.
One aspect of this that we find particularly troubling is the possibility of turning over the bridges to the MTA. We are not convinced that the MTA has always had the best interest of the city at heart.
It is estimated that the proposed plan will generate $1.5 billion a year for the MTA. Hopefully, that money will be used to provide better service to people who rely on the subways and busses in the city.
There’s not much to celebrate in the proposal from the governor−appointed independent commission, but it is better than a massive fare hike. In the long term the city and state must do everything possible to encourage commuters to use public transportation. Our roads and highways are clogged with cars that are destroying the air that we breathe. The money generated by the Mobility Tax and new bridge tolls must be used to improve public transportation and to encourage commuters to leave their cars at home.
