The congestion pricing plan backlash within the Staten Island community may have to be settled in court. Gus Rosendale reports.
With congestion pricing plans moving forward toward a possible debut in less than a year, there is growing frustration among those who would be poised to pay — including among New York City residents in one borough in particular.
Staten Island is joining New Jersey in a legal fight against the Metropolitan Transportation Agency's plan. Borough President Vito Fossella said Sunday he plans to sue to the MTA over the idea that would charge drivers as much as $23 to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street.
Fossella said the toll will treat outer borough residents as tourists in their own city. The lawsuit would follow plans from New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who announced Friday that he intended to sue the the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) over the plan, in a move he said was done in order to stand up for drivers.
"The problem is New Jersey's not at that table. With all due respect to the MTA, a lot of our commuters are going to be the ones they're looking to to solve their financial crisis. Which is unacceptable," the governor said in a TV interview.
Fossella said that he supports Murphy's lawsuit, but they will still be filing their own as well.
"We hope that New Jersey is successful in its efforts. Regardless, we plan to bring our own lawsuit," said Fossella. "As many of you know, we don’t even have a subway system. So here we are, a car-dependent community that has been left out of every major decision the MTA laid out over the last 50-plus years. And now we are forced to pay an additional toll."
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The MTA has long argued the additional tolls would raise nearly a billion dollars in revenue for the agency and ease traffic issues on city streets. Crews were seen last week installing scanners on Manhattan's West Side, part of the MTA's intentions to start charging drivers in parts of the island starting in midtown and heading south.
But Murphy says the plan would have a disastrous impact on New Jersey families. In announcing plans for a federal lawsuit, he argued the FHA should have conducted more studies into the impact congestion pricing would have on New Jersey, and that Garden State lawmakers should have had more of a chance to weigh in. Murphy also said the plan went ahead with a full environmental impact study.
"We would not be taking this legal action if we did not believe there was a real likelihood that we could call a timeout here, let's do the full-bore study," Murphy said. "And by the way, I'll say publicly what I've said privately: we'll live with the results. If they do the full study and it comes out in a way that doesn't advantage us, then we're going to have to figure it out."
Fossella echoed those claims, saying that "in its own report, the federal government states that the air quality on Staten Island will get worse as a result of this plan." He called the plan a "driving tax."
Murphy added that the state can't sue the MTA over congestion pricing until the plan is finalized, but didn't rule out another lawsuit being possible, or even an injunction. As of now, there still isn't anything set to go in place, as prices have not yet even been set yet.
Last week, the Traffic Mobility Review Board met for the first time on the proposed toll that could be as high as $23 during peak times. After the feds gave the plan the green light, MTA officials have said congestion pricing could go into effect as early as April 2024.
