Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In

But seriously folks, here are some quick hits from last night's congestion pricing council victory:

    • All ten Manhattan and seven Bronx council members voted in favor. In Brooklyn the vote was 7-9 against; Queens 5-9, and Staten Island 1-2.
    • Eric Gioia broke with his Queens colleagues to vote in favor of pricing, proving himself no doormat.
    • Two candidates for Brooklyn borough president, Bill de Blasio and Charles Barron, voted against. According to the Politicker: "De Blasio said he thinks transit projects in Brooklyn probably wouldn't be funded under the plan. Barron, describing the plan as a tax on poor New Yorkers, said that if the mayor can oppose a millionaire's tax, the council should avoid congestion pricing."
    • The Politicker also notes that "two city comptroller candidates -- Melinda Katz and David Weprin -- voted against congestion pricing, while three of their likely opponents in the race -- David Yassky, Simcha Felder and John Liu -- voted for it."
    • The Sun reports that Lower Manhattan's Alan Gerson "said he had been talking to Bloomberg aides about his demands until just before the vote. He said he had been assured that the administration would add traffic enforcement agents to his district, fund a study examining the Holland Tunnel corridor, and require new commuter buses to meet high environmental standards."
    • With the exception of de Blasio, Diana Reyna and Mathieu Eugene -- all from Brooklyn -- every council member counted as "undecided" by the New York Times in early March voted "yes." Gerson, Gioia, Felder, Letitia James, Joel Rivera, Thomas White, Jr. and Michael McMahon were considered to be opposed to pricing at that time, but ultimately supported it.
    • The Post says Senate Republicans may take up the pricing bill "as soon as today." Though its "prospects in the Legislature are far from certain," Crain's reports they "have been improving in the last week." Sheldon Silver, meanwhile, is presumably holding out for a deal TBD.
    • Streetsblog's Jason Varone reports: "Tony Avella was on Brian Lehrer this morning, and said he is filing a FOIL request to see if any unethical persuasion went on behind the scenes during the Mayor's attempt to pass this bill. He also said that if he is elected Mayor next year, he will stop congestion pricing immediately."
    • According to Keep NYC Congestion Tax Free, that won't be necessary.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Monday’s Headlines: Violation Calculation Edition

Let's talk a little about NYPD enforcement of moving violations, plus other news (yet, understandably, not a word about our Mets).

October 7, 2024

Talking Headways Podcast: Transit Themed Rock Music

Meet a band that writes exclusively about the car-free life on public transit. And it rocks!

October 7, 2024

The Insider: How to Blow the Whistle on a Federal Transportation Agency

Quon Kwan's research could have lead to regulations that says saved hundreds of pedestrians and cyclists in large truck crashes. Instead, the analysis was quashed.

October 7, 2024

SPECIAL REPORT: Fake Chaplains, Faithless Scam

"Park like an animal, but kosher," reads a recent ad for chaplaincy training and placards for "graduates." But it's all fake.

X-Citement: Union Boss and Streetsblog Columnist Fight Congestion Pricing War in Public

Get some popcorn and watch Charles Komanoff and union boss John Samuelsen battle on Twitter.

October 4, 2024
See all posts