Current edition: Mobilizing the Region #406, March 10, 2003
FY 04 NJ DOT Capital Program Much Smarter
Although things probably couldn’t get worse than last year, New Jersey DOT’s capital program managers claim they are finally "turning the ship," and paying heed to the Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s call for higher levels of funding for "fix it first" projects.
Report Studies Who Will Pay for East River Tolls
The Bridge Tolls Advocacy Project released a report this week that examines who will pay if East River bridges are tolled. Findings from the report indicate that less than 2% of people over 18 would pay more than $50 a year in East River tolls.
MTA Raises Fares, Approves Antiquated Toll Plan
The MTA Board voted on Thursday to raise fares on NYC Transit to $2, increase LIRR and Metro-North Rail fares by 25%, and close 62 token booths. The MTA also voted for a 50-cent flat toll hike on its bridges and tunnels, missing a perfect opportunity to implement congestion pricing.
NJ "Safety First" Program Limited
Governor McGreevey’s Highway Safety Task Force released its twelve-point "Safety First" program this week. Although the program was created in response to a string of tractor-trailer crashes that killed three people and shut down I-78, I-80, and I-287 on the same day last November, it falls short of fully addressing the dangers large trucks pose to NJ drivers.
Parking Investment Bad Sign for NJ Transit Villages
Once a New Jersey transit village is designated as such, state funding allocated to the town is not necessarily consistent with transit village ideals. State funding allocations to transit villages, especially those from NJ Transit and NJDOT, should focus on transit village ideals and decrease car dependency. So far, much of NJDOT and NJ Transit funding is car-focused, and is not providing residents with alternative transportation methods.
This was a bad week for transit riders throughout the region. Along with the MTA fare increase, base fares for Westchester’s Bee-line bus system increased on Monday from $1.40 to $1.75.
New York State TEA-21 Reauthorization Update
At Governor Pataki’s request, former New York State Assembly Minority leader John Faso will head an initiative to protect New York State’s interests in the upcoming reauthorization of the Transportation Equity Act of 21st Century (TEA- 21) bill.
| Each week, the Tri-State Transportation Campaign publishes Mobilizing the Region, or MTR. MTR is a bulletin on New Jersey, New York and Connecticut transportation news and opinion from the perspective of advocacy for sustainable transportation. | |
| MTR #406 portable document format (PDF) file (requires Adobe Acrobat).
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MTR 405 - March 3, 2003
MTR 404 - February 24, 2003
MTR 403 - February 18, 2003
MTR 402 - February 10, 2003
