Congestion Pricing and the Environment

There was some hoopla about the recent op-ed in the Wall Street Journal claiming that congestion pricing would actually increase emissions by making driving easier. As a cyclist first, transit user second, and pedestrian third, I'm all for giving these modes advantages over driving, but increasing and/or ignoring congestion is not the way to do that. As the only person qualified to judge the value of my time, I want there to be a driving system priced appropriately that gets me where I need to go when I'm in a rush and willing to pay. Some people will always drive, but if the economics are right, that will be much less common. Giving me the freedom to choose which appropriately-priced mode of transportation I consume for any given trip is no different than any other market. I don't expect chocolate volcano lava cake for the price of grocery store ice cream and I don't expect to cruise through the heart of a major urban area at 55 mph for the price of, well, free. And as a primary user of alternative modes, making driving harder does not make my life easier. If the cost of driving is included in its price, consumers can make informed choices about their travel. It would be nice if bicycle, transit, and pedestrian infrastructure received even a fraction of the attention that our roads get.

As for the actual merits of the WSJ piece, I'll leave it to Streetsblog to point out that every city that has tried congestion pricing saw a reduction in congestion and emissions, while improving the travel times of all modes. It's amazing what good economics will do.

More Streetsblog commentary that is right on point.

Queens Council Members Sticking it the Man!

Members of the Queens Chamber of Commerce are protesting Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan. Claiming that the plan is not about reducing traffic but about increasing revenue by charging 8 dollars to enter Manhattan. Joined by many other citizens they protested under the Queensboro Bridge.

To read the whole store click here to read it from the Queens Ledger.

Congestion Pricing in New York

Click here for the Congestion Pricing

The Queens Gazette reported on a recent meeting for the Community Board 2 meeting in Queens, NY where two different citizen expressed their viewpoints on Mayor Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan.

The plan would reduce vehicle miles traveled by 6.1 percent and an estimated 38.6 percent reduction in the most congested areas.

61% of the citizens at this meeting approve of this plan and 36% would approve the plan even if the money does not go towards improving mass transit.

Other residents at the meeting expressed different opinions about congestion pricing calling it a regressive tax using the London model where the prices have increased by 150% since the programs founding. They also claim that the majority of the congestion comes from taxis and limos therefore they suggest an alternative method to relieve congestion by specifically targeting those vehicles.

£25 SUV Congestion Charge

London Mayor Ken Livingstone will be passing a plan to charge £25 for cars that emits 225g per km of CO2 when entering congestion zones. Cars that emit less than 120g per km will be omitted and cars in between will be charged £8 for entering.

Two questions, where will the money collected from these funds go and how will delivery businesses respond?

Also, if Bloomberg successfully added a congestion zone in NYC do you think a fee like this would eventually be added as well?

To read the full article click here