PAYING FOR ALL THIS DRIVING
by Mark Plotz

Lately, the question of where to get funding for our public roads has (again) been in the news. Since CenterLines last landed in my In Box, there have been rumblings at the federal and regional level in Washington DC about how tolls, user fees, and privatization might become part of the solution to our worsening traffic. Then, Monday night, New York City's City Council upstaged all the transportation policy pundits by voting 30-20 to approve a plan for congestion pricing in Manhattan. Under the proposal that was approved, drivers entering Manhattan would be charged a toll of $8 to use the streets between 6am and 6pm on weekdays.

Wow. That could pull in $500 million per year which could - theoretically - do a lot for transit users and their two wheeled and two footed friends.

The plan has a long way to go before being implemented. It must first survive the trip to Albany and then be signed by the latest governor. But should this happen - and most experts agree that, eventually, it will happen in NYC - Gotham would join London, Stockholm, and Sri Lanka which have all implemented congestion pricing schemes.

Since its implementation 5 years ago, London's toll zone has experienced a 21 percent reduction in traffic, improved bus service, and... bicycle ridership increased by 45 percent!!! This October, the City will take the next step as it begins charging higher fees for vehicles with larger engines (and greater fuel consumption). I applaud the move because it brings me one step closer to my ultimate goal: the authorities paying me to bicycle to work.

Sources
City Council Approves Fee to Drive Below 60th
New York Times, April 1, 2008

Faster, Maybe. Cheaper, No. But Driving Has Its Fans
New York Times, March 31, 2008

Importing a Decongestant for Midtown Streets
New York Times, March 16, 2008

Additional reading on HOT lanes and congestion pricing:

Letting the Market Drive Transportation
Washington Post, March 17, 2008
Meet Tyler Duvall, top policy maker at the DOT and free market enthusiast: he wants to put E-ZPass on your bike lane. (I'm just kinda, sorta, kidding about that.)

Report Suggests New Tolls for Region
Washington Post, March 17, 2008
The Washington DC area is now home to the second worst traffic congestion in the nation. A federally funded 18 month study explored the possibilities and implications of adding tolls to the region's highways and parkways. An estimated $2.75 billion would be reaped every year for improvements to roads and transit.

Mark Plotz is the program director for the National Center for Bicycling and Walking.

Labels: congestion-tolls