Gov. Kathy Hochul says new congestion pricing plan in the works, Staten Island officials sound off
STATEN ISLAND, New York (WABC) -- New York Governor Kathy Hochul appears to be taking steps to unpause congestion pricing in the city.
She said she will have an announcement "in the near future."
"I plan to put forth a proposal that will fund the program, deal with mitigation of environmental impacts, congestion mitigation as well," Hochul said. "We have a plan to do this, as we have had since June."
Hochul declined to get into details Tuesday, including how much congestion pricing will cost when it is unpaused. Previously, she has floated the idea of lowering the toll from $15 down to $9 for most people driving into Manhattan below 60th Street.
"When I know something is too expensive for them, I will endure the lawsuits, the ads, the criticism, because I believe we need to start listening to our constituents, it was too much, so nine lawsuits later, I'm still standing," Hochul said.
Earlier Tuesday, elected officials on Staten Island came together to speak out against the potential return of congestion pricing.
"Staten Islanders are being asked to pay more without seeing any improvements to our daily commute or our quality of life," said City Councilmember Kamillah Hanks.
Hochul nixed the controversial proposal just weeks before it was set to go into effect at the beginning of this summer. It was paused because the governor claimed she was worried drivers were paying too much.
However, it was also seen as a political move ahead of the general election.
"As people struggle to pay their rent, cover their groceries bills, and for my constituents who have some of the longest and most expensive commutes in the country, congestion pricing is just another tax," said State Senator Jessica Scarcella-Spanton, (D) 23rd District.
"Congestion pricing is nothing more than a scam. It's about raising a billion dollars so that the MTA can borrow $15 billion for its bloated and mismanaged operations and it needs to be stopped dead in its tracks," said Rep. Mike Lawler, (R) New York.
Emboldened by the incoming administration, Republican lawmakers from every corner of the state admonished the governor.
"The governor put a pause on it, and I think that was the right thing to do at that time and I think they should just scrap it - it's a bad idea. It's bad for commuters in Nassau County and around the region." said Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman.
"We're going to have a new EPA in Lee Zeldin, a good friend and opponent of this scheme," said Republican Senator Andrew Lanza. "There's nothing to stop us, and we will... to ask this new EPA to review what had been done in the past."
Even with a reduction in the proposed toll, the plan is at the center of multiple ongoing lawsuits.
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