New York City has been cleared to implement congestion pricing, a practice that allows the city to charge drivers entering Lower Manhattan, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Monday.
It’s still a regressive tax, no different than charging everyone $1000 each “just because” and claiming it’s good because it will benefit them back.
will go to fund public transportation
Don’t keep your hopes up, it will end up in the general fund like everything else. Any portion that they manage to use to fund transportation directly will just offset existing transportation spending, same as how tipping in the delivery apps just decreases the base pay for the driver.
Fewer cars
I wish! But if the intent was in good faith, then instead of a flat fee they would have used an income percentage fee - not even progressive necessarily, but at the very least non-regressive: something like 2% annual income for an annual entry pass. And make sure that the primary occupant of the car is the one paying the fee, and not the 50k/year limo driver. The roadspace is meant for the equal use of everyone, not just the rich. To say “if you are too poor/can’t afford it, you don’t get to drive here” is un-American. If you want less traffic, just keep raising the percentage fee until the level you need. Then it would affect everyone equally. But the way it’s being done now is just a powergrab by the rich.
It’s still a regressive tax, no different than charging everyone $1000 each “just because” and claiming it’s good because it will benefit them back.
Don’t keep your hopes up, it will end up in the general fund like everything else. Any portion that they manage to use to fund transportation directly will just offset existing transportation spending, same as how tipping in the delivery apps just decreases the base pay for the driver.
I wish! But if the intent was in good faith, then instead of a flat fee they would have used an income percentage fee - not even progressive necessarily, but at the very least non-regressive: something like 2% annual income for an annual entry pass. And make sure that the primary occupant of the car is the one paying the fee, and not the 50k/year limo driver. The roadspace is meant for the equal use of everyone, not just the rich. To say “if you are too poor/can’t afford it, you don’t get to drive here” is un-American. If you want less traffic, just keep raising the percentage fee until the level you need. Then it would affect everyone equally. But the way it’s being done now is just a powergrab by the rich.