New TV Ad Focuses on PlaNYC’s Health Benefits




The Campaign for New York’s Future has released a new poll, a glossy mailer that’ll go out to 380,000 families, and a television advertisement focusing on the health benefits of Mayor Bloomberg’s PlaNYC 2030. The Daily Politics has a nice write-up:

With time running out up in Albany and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver
saying he has no intention of moving on congestion pricing, the
Campaign for New York’s Future, a pro-congestion pricing coalition, has
unleashed a new TV ad and a poll
that indicates support for the proposal increases dramatically once
people are explained the "benefits" of the mayor’s plan — as he sees
them.

The ad features Keisha Lee, a Queens mother who lives near the 59th Street bridge and whose children all have asthma. Here’s some of the script:

We live by the 59th Street Bridge. It’s a nice area, but I think there’s a lot of congestion. All my children have asthma. Basically, it’s like, you know, someone sitting on your chest, and
it’s hard to breathe, and you’re just, you’re like gasping for breath. I think living under the 59h Street Bridge has contributed to my children’s asthma. The air is very bad with all the congestion. With all the traffic going into Manhattan. It is hurting my children. I think we deserve a chance like
everybody else, who want to have clean air nice playground for our
children to play in.

  • James

    If SHELDON SILVER DOESN’T MOVE ON CONGESTION PRICING THEN HE HAS BLOOD ON HIS HANDS!

  • Sarah Goodyear

    I grew up at 64th and Second in an apartment that overlooked the slow-moving stream of traffic heading to the Queensboro Bridge.

    I had asthma as a child and was hospitalized for it several times.

    My son is growing up about half a mile from the BQE. He is five years old. Now he has asthma too.

    Until you’ve seen your child struggling to breathe, or struggled to breathe yourself, it’s hard to understand how horrible this disease is.

    Let’s do something before the next generation of New Yorkers has to suffer.

  • pete

    The BQE may very well end up worse traffic with congestion pricing. Imagine the trucks avoid crossing Manhattan to use Lincoln/Holland Tunnel now using BQE to go toward Verrazano or GWBridge.

  • Respect the Past

    First of all, I do support the congestion pricing plan, but I am interested in everyone’s opinion – would it be easier/cheaper to charge for all parking and also charge a toll for all entries into Manhattan? What would everyone anticipate as the difference between these two methods?

    I know there are already tolls in place, but as others have pointed out, there are methods for getting around the tolls. Therefore, if they found a way of setting up a toll system, along with forcing people to pay “market rate” for parking, wouldn’t this curb the amount of drivers coming into Manhattan and also allocate the costs related to parking from all Manhattanites (even those without cars) to only Manhattanites with cars and to people coming from out of town?

    Comments would be appreciated.

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