Please call our city council members and ask them to vote against congestion pricing.
Congestion pricing will severly affect small bussiness moreso low income drivers and their family.
Thank you in advance.

The measure would charge drivers without E-ZPass an extra dollar for travel into the zone, giving them 48 hours to pay the $9 fee to the city. If they miss the deadline, the fee would rise to $65; if they fail to pay, they could be fined up to $115. The plan also calls for the creation of a mass transit enhancement fund, financed by any increases in parking meter fees within the congestion zone, to pay for bike paths, bus rapid transit systems and other items.

“The message this bill sends to the people of the city of New York is if you're poor, if you don't have access to a credit card, if you don't have access to a bank account, you should pay more,” Mr. Kellner said.

Mr. Bloomberg has said he wanted to address those concerns, perhaps by including a credit for low-income drivers.

Democratic Bronx Assemblyman Michael Benedetto said he is inclined to support congestion pricing, but said his colleagues have a number of concerns with the plan. For example, New Jersey drivers will not have to pay extra after paying $8 in tolls, and taxis only have to pay $1 surcharge.



Go to both of the web sites use your business and home address to find the members in your area, just tell them congestion pricing is not good for our city. Tell them to vote no. You may call as well. This is a total or 4 notes -- 2 for the assembly and 2 for the council members.
Remember vans are 8.00, without easy pass 9.00 and trucks are 21.00 one time per day.

All trucks and vans amount to 7% of the congested area taxis are 40% and passenger vehicles are 53%.
The estimates say traffic will be reduced by 6%. If the results are not favorable they will simply rise the rates of the toll. Say No as soon as possible Copy and paste the below addresses to your browser.

http://www.assembly.state.ny.us/mem/?ad=&submit=Go

http://council.nyc.gov/html/members/members.shtml

Sorry Bro but I am with the Mayor. There are enough Trains and Buses to take you to Manhattan.

quote:

Originally posted by Nehru:
Sorry Bro but I am with the Mayor. There are enough Trains and Buses to take you to Manhattan.

Not really. Unless you like pressing up against people during rush hour.

Chief this plan has its long term benefits.

CP has worked in London, Stockholm and Singapore and it is necessary in NY! Average street traffic speed in Manhattan is at best 10mph during the day and with expected population growth and job growth the city needs to address the issue of congestion and its harmful effects.

The city will receive $354 million to improve current transit service (before the CP plan goes into effect) utilizing BRTS and such if they submit the proposal by the March 31 deadline. Without CP the Second Avenue Subway may never be funded and you all will be stuck riding over-crowded trains forever.

quote:

Originally posted by antabanta:

quote:

Originally posted by Nehru:
Sorry Bro but I am with the Mayor. There are enough Trains and Buses to take you to Manhattan.

Not really. Unless you like pressing up against people during rush hour.

hey some ppl like the rush hour ppl pressin..

quote:

Originally posted by Petal29:
Chief this plan has its long term benefits.

CP has worked in London, Stockholm and Singapore and it is necessary in NY! Average street traffic speed in Manhattan is at best 10mph during the day and with expected population growth and job growth the city needs to address the issue of congestion and its harmful effects.

The city will receive $354 million to improve current transit service (before the CP plan goes into effect) utilizing BRTS and such if they submit the proposal by the March 31 deadline. Without CP the Second Avenue Subway may never be funded and you all will be stuck riding over-crowded trains forever.

I agree with this but the plan needs a lot of tweaking. They can start by limiting the number of municipal employees who drive in with all their special parkind and driving perks. I think this was mentioned a while back in the news as an issue.
With all the benefits there's no doubt that some people will bear the burden more than others, esp small businesses that require personal transpy.

quote:

Originally posted by RQ:

quote:

Originally posted by antabanta:

quote:

Originally posted by Nehru:
Sorry Bro but I am with the Mayor. There are enough Trains and Buses to take you to Manhattan.

Not really. Unless you like pressing up against people during rush hour.

hey some ppl like the rush hour ppl pressin..

After being out of the city for about 10yrs I commuted for just over a year and hated it. I'm out of the city again and ain't complaining. You must be talking about dem pervs.

quote:

Originally posted by antabanta:
I agree with this but the plan needs a lot of tweaking. They can start by limiting the number of municipal employees who drive in with all their special parkind and driving perks. I think this was mentioned a while back in the news as an issue.
With all the benefits there's no doubt that some people will bear the burden more than others, esp small businesses that require personal transpy.

Anta, The original plan submitted by Bloomie was tweaked and one of the commission's recommendations was “reducing the number of placards by public employees.” True that some businesses will suffer in the short term but most of the studies done in the other cities that have implemented CP show that businesses in general have not been affected or have been affected positively.

Personally, I feel that they can ease some of the congestion by better traffic engineering (lights etc.) but long term the only sustainable solution is CP.

Final report

The plan is absolutely nonsense.
It is just a ploy to raise revenue.

quote:

Originally posted by Terry Ishmael:
The plan is absolutely nonsense.
It is just a ploy to raise revenue.

London's mayor Ken Livingston admitted it was a stealth tax, he is likely to be booted out next May in the elections. The charges has not improved traffic,worse it has ruined shops and restaurants in the center.

There will be no change.
Traffic will still come downtown because they have to. The subway is already maxed out and can't handle a bigger crowd.
Also, nobody is going to pay $7.50 for a subway day pass, when for the $8 tax, they can drive up and down all day.

This is just another way to shaft the small man.

quote:

Originally posted by Sunil:
London's mayor Ken Livingston admitted it was a stealth tax, he is likely to be booted out next May in the elections. The charges has not improved traffic,worse it has ruined shops and restaurants in the center.

London First (www.london-first.co.uk), a business group whose members account for
22% of the city’s GDP, supports the city’s congestion charge. A survey performed May
2003 found that its members consider the scheme to have overall positive impacts on
business activity. The majority (69%) felt charging had no impact on their business, 22%
reported positive impacts on their business, and only 9% reported an overall negative
impact. Many industries support the charge because its direct costs are offset by savings
and benefits, such as faster delivery times. Cert Logistics, a distribution company that
delivers to many downtown restaurants and hotels, reports its delivery times have been
cut by as much as 50%, and other industries find that their employees spend less time
delayed in traffic, and so can attend more out-of-office meetings in a day. The £5 charge
pays for itself in just 17 minutes of travel time savings for employees earning average
London wages (£34,000 per year), and many city center employees earn far more.
London Chamber of Commerce (www.londonchamber.co.uk) members have been more
skeptical of the program. A March, 2003 survey found that many city center retailers
blame the charge for reduced sales (although the Iraq war and its security measures, a
temporary closure of two subway lines, and a general economic downturn also impacted
local business activity), and some threaten to leave the city. Opposition to the program
tends to be greater among smaller retailers, and may partly reflect political ideology (the
business community tends to oppose Mayor Ken Livingstone and his policies), and may
represent a political strategy to gain more special treatment to benefit local retail
businesses, such as lower parking fees and special discounts.

http://www.vtpi.org/london.pdf

quote:

Originally posted by Terry Ishmael:
There will be no change.
Traffic will still come downtown because they have to. The subway is already maxed out and can't handle a bigger crowd.
Also, nobody is going to pay $7.50 for a subway day pass, when for the $8 tax, they can drive up and down all day.

This is just another way to shaft the small man.

Actually you’re right on two counts:
1) that the middle class will be most affected
2) it’s a way to raise revenue for transportation projects
but you are wrong to think that there will be significant crowding on the subway. The additional passengers will be nominal and there will also be Bus Rapid Transit.

Why are you assuming that drivers would have to buy a day pass? The regular 9-5er would park their car and take the subway/bus. The small businessman who has to drive around will pay $8/day and if he is already paying tolls then it amounts to himpaying almost nothing.

quote:

Originally posted by Nehru:
Sorry Bro but I am with the Mayor. There are enough Trains and Buses to take you to Manhattan.

The MTA are reneging on its promise to increase services on some of the lines that was promised to get fare increase.

Since the fare increase, service got increasingly worse.
I am thinking of driving in now.

quote:

Originally posted by Chief:
low income drivers and their family.
Thank you in advance.

You would rather that low income workers pay higher transit fares and suffer service reductions!?

quote:

Originally posted by antabanta:
[]Not really. Unless you like pressing up against people during rush hour.

No one is saying you shouldnt drive. Just pay for the priviledge of doing so.

quote:

Originally posted by Sunil:

quote:

Originally posted by Terry Ishmael:
The plan is absolutely nonsense.
It is just a ploy to raise revenue.

London's mayor Ken Livingston admitted it was a stealth tax, he is likely to be booted out next May in the elections. The charges has not improved traffic,worse it has ruined shops and restaurants in the center.

Thanks TI & Sunil.
The bottom line is revenue collection and nothing else.
As usual the small man will suffer for prices for small items will increase, especially food.
Some of my colleagues in the delivery industry are saying that they will pass on the cost to their customers but in my opinion in the long run it will hurt our bussiness.

Petal, it is very difficult to trust state and city gov't because in the past they promised money from the lottery to go towards education and they misused the funds for other things.
The MTA need to be revamped before any type of congestion pricing comes into place.

quote:

Originally posted by Terry Ishmael:
.
It is just a ploy to raise revenue.

It is a ploy to raise revenue. Whats wrong with that?

quote:

Originally posted by caribj:

quote:

Originally posted by Terry Ishmael:
.
It is just a ploy to raise revenue.

It is a ploy to raise revenue. Whats wrong with that?

Nothing is wrong with raising revenue but not at the expense of the poor.

quote:

Originally posted by caribj:

quote:

Originally posted by antabanta:
[]Not really. Unless you like pressing up against people during rush hour.

No one is saying you shouldnt drive. Just pay for the priviledge of doing so.

Why? Do you pay for the privelege of driving elsewhere? What does that have to do with the inept bus and train service?

quote:

Originally posted by Chief:
Nothing is wrong with raising revenue but not at the expense of the poor.

Chief the poor are the heaviest users of the MTA and the ones least able to afford fare increases, service reductions and these will happen if alternative revenue sources for transit arent found.


BTW I am not impressed by the "poverty" of those who drive to NYC. Call them lower middle class and be honest. How many poor people can afford to drive to NYC daily and pay for parking in addition to all the other expenses that owning a car in NYC entails?

quote:

Originally posted by Chief:
Thanks TI & Sunil.
The bottom line is revenue collection and nothing else.
As usual the small man will suffer for prices for small items will increase, especially food.
Some of my colleagues in the delivery industry are saying that they will pass on the cost to their customers but in my opinion in the long run it will hurt our bussiness.

Petal, it is very difficult to trust state and city gov't because in the past they promised money from the lottery to go towards education and they misused the funds for other things.
The MTA need to be revamped before any type of congestion pricing comes into place.

While one of the main goals is revenue collection, the benefits of reducing congestion will not only be revenue collection.

You mentioned low income families; well there will be tax break available to them. Chief I know you feel that you will be personally affected but for the 1% of people who may be affected negatively, 99% of NYers would enjoy better service, cleaner air, and hopefully for you, better business. However, with the current state of the economy business may be slow nevertheless.

The new president is in the process of revamping the MTA…we shouldn't have to wait for that to have CP.