Pricing on the Bridges?
Mr. Boyle's letter to the Staten Island groups also confirms
the agency's wariness about congestion relief pricing on its bridges -
and reiterates that perceived political difficulties are the reason.
But his concerns may be misplaced. A study commissioned by Borough President
Guy Molinari last fall called for a study of congestion relief pricing
on all four of Staten Island's bridges (so far, nothing has come of any
of the Borough President's recommendations). And four Staten Island elected
officials have endorsed congestion relief pricing as a means of managing
congestion on the Staten Island Expressway. Given a choice between variable
tolls and an onslaught of truck traffic, and that big bureaucracies
are generally the last to get around the curve of anything new, Staten
Islanders might be more willing than the PA thinks to give congestion relief
pricing a try.
