Congestion Pricing for All

A checker cab, the anti-Uber, on Central Park West.

Ah, the war on cars. Who doesn't love it? This morning on the normally serious BBC Newshour, I listened from Mexico City, as a toothless reporter let his anti-congestion pricing guest blather on as if he knew what he was talking about. The guest's beef, that New York has introduced congestion pricing while at the same time stealing lanes from drivers for bus-only and bike lanes. Quel horreur! Does the guest actually think the prior status quo of congested streets and smog-filled air is acceptable for North America's greatest city?

Some New Yorkers also once thought Westway was a good idea. Thankfully, they were wrong and a succession of City leaders agreed.

A late December view of the Lower West Side from Pier 57.

New York's governor is clearly focused on losing the bridge and tunnel vote, especially those New Jersey drivers who don't even go to the polls in New York State.

While the guest still had the floor, he then went on to talk about the $700 Million the MTA is losing annually in revenue from subway riders who jump the turnstiles. Not one to quibble with his numbers, is he really that much of a transit hater that he hasn't noticed, or read about, the MTA's increased enforcement at the turnstiles and on the buses? This interview was almost as ripe as listening to the NYC firemen's union president whine about how congestion pricing will make NYC less safe as firemen won't be able to afford to drive their cars from one station to another to respond to calls. That's a good one, as who other than a New York City employee can still spell the words 'City employee pension.'

New York City has long needed congestion pricing and now it finally has it. Amen.

Change is hard as the long battle over congestion pricing has proved. If you live in Nassau or Suffolk, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rockland or Westchester and are glued to the steering wheel of your Lincoln Navigator, you are going to miss the subsidy that for too long has let you clog the streets and pollute the air in midtown. The proof will be in the pudding, less congestion and better transit as revenues from congestion pricing will go to new trains and state-of-the-art signals that speed travel times and subway safety. And maybe someday on those less congested streets, the City will find the willpower to introduce true bus rapid transit (BRT).

Metrobús Insurgentes, Chilpancingo, Mexico City (CDMX).

A bus-only lane BRT in Puebla, México.

Boarding from a center lane station also speeds up commute times as riders board the bus having already paid their fare with a card at the turnstile.

Faster commute times on bus rapid transit leave riders time to enjoy their city, or in the case of Puebla, El Popo volcano at sunset.

El volcán Popocatépetl, or El Popo, seen from La Paz, Puebla.

At a challenging time in the U.S. and around the world, it is good to see that wise decisions like congestion pricing can still be achieved.

Yours in transit,

Joel

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