Make That 21 Council Members in Favor of Pricing

Gerson.gif


Council Member Alan Gerson bikes in support of safer cross-town cycling route for Lower Manhattan, Sept. 2006. Villager photo by Jefferson Siegel

Following the Gotham Gazette’s surprising report that he was the only Manhattan City Council Member firmly against Mayor Bloomberg’s congestion pricing plan, Lower Manhattan City Council member Alan Gerson has issued a statement clarifying his position. Gerson says that, in fact, he "supports appropriate variations of congestion pricing as part of a broader traffic management plan."

Gerson’s District 1 encompasses the southernmost tip of Manhattan. Census data indicates that 79% of the households in Gerson’s district do not own a car. Gerson’s complete statement can be found after the jump. They’re talking about it on Gotham Gazette.

STATEMENT OF COUNCIL MEMBER
GERSON ON CONGESTION PRICING

Council Member Gerson supports appropriate variations of congestion pricing as part of a broader traffic management plan. Gerson looks forward to working with the 17-member New York City Traffic Congestion Mitigation Commission. There are many creative ways in which the State and City can implement such a plan and it is essential that New York City residents get the most thoroughly researched and workable one.


Improving air quality, reducing traffic and improving non-polluting bus service remain high priorities among others for Gerson. Beginning this summer, the Council Member will hold a series of traffic town hall meetings throughout Lower Manhattan to gather information on congestion pricing proposals and other ideas for these goals. The Council Member will incorporate community input and present a detailed traffic management proposal later in the fall.

Gerson praised Mayor Michael Bloomberg for his leadership in raising the congestion pricing idea, and Council Speaker Quinn for her support. Gerson also praised Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver for putting in place a process that will assure that New Yorkers have the appropriate, in depth conversation over this issue. The Council Member has confidence that the process will lead to a plan that will meet short-term and long-term goals for New Yorkers throughout all five boroughs.

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

Gerson: Proposed Pricing Plan Misses the Mark

By Brad Aaron |
Council Member Alan Gerson says the congestion pricing plan ignores the car-choked Canal Street corridor Yesterday we noted that District 1 City Council Member Alan Gerson was the only Manhattan representative to indicate that he would vote against the congestion pricing plan in its current form, according to an "unofficial roll call" conducted by the […]

Times Poll Finds 20 Council Members Against Pricing

By Brad Aaron |
Last week the New York Times conducted an informal survey of City Council member positions on congestion pricing. The poll found that 12 members are currently in favor, 20 are opposed, and 11 are undecided. Eight members did not respond. The "opposed" list is comprised completely of council members from boroughs other than Manhattan, with […]

Gerson Looks to Rein In Runaway Safety Improvements

By Brad Aaron |
Not long ago, Alan Gerson spoke in favor of giving pedestrians more space at Petrosino Square. Alan Gerson’s office has more on what we suspected was a bill intended to give the Lower Manhattan City Council member and his colleagues more power over DOT implementation of new bike infrastructure. Judging by this comment from Gerson […]

Disconnect Between Pols and People at Brooklyn Traffic Hearing

By Ben Fried |
On balance, speakers at last night’s traffic mitigation hearing in Brooklyn delivered a pro-pricing message — a strong one if you discount the politicians who said their piece and left the auditorium before their constituents got to the mic. About 60 people came to Medgar Evers College in Crown Heights and weighed in on the […]

Undecided Council Members Speak Up at Pricing Hearing

By Ben Fried |
Janette Sadik-Khan and Rohit Aggarwala (left table) fielded questions this morning from City Council members, including Lew Fidler and Larry Seabrook. At the first part of today’s congestion pricing hearings, Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan and Rohit Aggarwala, director of the Office for Long-Term Planning and Sustainability, fielded questions from the City Council’s nine-member State and […]