Quinn Says MTA Troubles Show Why We Need Pricing

Care of the Observer Politicker comes this video from earlier today. Speaking at City Hall, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn turns around a question from a reporter on whether the MTA can be trusted with congestion pricing revenues, given that promised upgrades tied to the recent fare increase will be delayed. Quinn calls the MTA’s actions "outrageous," and suggests the congestion pricing lock box will give the city more control over the transit agency.

Said Quinn:

"To me, this is a strong reason why we need congestion pricing. It’s a reason why we need a separate, sustainable revenue stream targeted at capital expansion of mass transit in the City of New York … We need that money to go somewhere separate, where the MTA’s board is not the final and only authority over it."

The Observer’s Azi Paybarah says Quinn is "optimistic" that pricing will get approval by the council.

Standing behind Quinn is the undecided Bill De Blasio. 

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

MTA Blame Game: Lowlights From Queens

By Noah Kazis |
The MTA roadshow is in full swing, with raucous public hearings on service cuts drawing hundreds in Queens and Staten Island last night. Some press outlets are questioning whether the hearings actually get anything accomplished. It’s a good question to chew on, since the MTA Board’s options are limited by the agency’s massive budget gap. […]

Congestion Pricing Can Help Save Working NYC Families $2,300 Per Year

By Noah Kazis |
Without congestion pricing, fare hikes will hit New York’s many transit-using families hard. Image: Ed Yourdon via Flickr. Without bold action from legislators to fund transit, middle-class New York families will have to spend $2,300 more per year to get around the city even as the quality of the service they’re paying for declines, according […]

Quinn Announces Her Support for Congestion Pricing

By Aaron Naparstek |
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn announced her support for congestion pricing at a press conference this morning on the Hudson River Greenway at Charles Street: Over the past two months I have been carefully reviewing the 127 items included in PlaNYC 2030. Many of these grew out of the Mayor’s Sustainability Task Force, which the […]

What We Know So Far About Cuomo’s MTA Reinvention Commission

By Stephen Miller |
In early May, Governor Andrew Cuomo directed the MTA to create a “transportation reinvention” panel as the authority prepared its next five-year capital plan. Members were appointed late last month, and the commission has launched Facebook and Twitter accounts. But details about its agenda and how open it will be to the public are scant. […]