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The Fuse Is Still Lit on MTA Debt Bomb
Flash back a few weeks to the heat of the MTA funding debate: Remember all the talk about long-term, sustainable funding streams for our transit system? That's what the Ravitch plan was supposed to deliver. We knew as soon as the deal went down last month that the state legislature and Governor Paterson flubbed their chance to make good on that promise. Now, writes Ben Kabak at Second Avenue Sagas, state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli has issued a report that makes it official:
June 3, 2009
LaHood: NYC’s Congestion Pricing Money Still There for the Taking
Speaking at an event in Midtown yesterday morning, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood let it be known that New York City can still claim hundreds of millions of dollars in federal transit funding -- if local lawmakers implement congestion pricing. NY1 reports:
May 14, 2009
Want a Clean Bill of Health for the MTA? Call Obama.
Former MTA CEO Lee Sander spent the last two-and-a-half years doing his best to make the MTA a transparent, accountable public agency, and in doing so restore its reputation. He let the sunshine in, but was unable to undo the damage to the agency's image caused by years of attacks from transit advocates, unions and politicians.
May 8, 2009
Albany’s Choice… or Ours
Thank Albany. By segmenting the 30-35 percent transit fare increase into three stages, the legislature has opened the door for a broad-based campaign to put an end to fare hikes and institute genuine transportation reform.
May 7, 2009
Senator Diaz: Sticking It to Transit Riders and Proud of It
In this scene from last night's State Senate vote on the MTA funding package, Fare Hike Four member Ruben Diaz, Sr. relishes his substantial influence over the final bill:
May 7, 2009
We Can’t Go on Living Like This
We'll have more on the details of the MTA funding deal as they emerge. For now I'd like to focus on its most salient feature: The failure to impose new fees on car commuters, whose daily trips would slow to a standstill without a functional transit system.
May 6, 2009
Albany Reaches MTA Deal
It's pretty much a done deal, with an official announcement from the three men in a room expected shortly. What's the plan? The sordid details are still emerging, but Politicker's Jimmy Vielkind has some numbers:
May 5, 2009
Malcolm Smith Spins Transit Band-aid as Victory for “Reform”
Now that Governor Paterson has backtracked on his pledge to secure a long-term solution to New York's transit funding crisis, the push is on to spin the slapdash result as a responsible outcome, not a capitulation to Albany's lowest common denominator.
May 5, 2009
Paterson Abandons Long-Term MTA Financing Effort
We're getting dangerously close to transit Armageddon.
May 4, 2009
Don’t Keep Transit Riders in the Dark, Governor
Heading into the weekend, Governor Paterson is still keeping a tight lid on exactly how he plans to handle the MTA's huge funding shortfall. Lately, Paterson has taken to joking about this crisis by saying that "light bends around Albany" -- a not-so-veiled reference to Senate Democrats and their closed-door machinations. I first heard the line a few weeks ago at the RPA Regional Assembly, where we all laughed and ate up the governor's act.
May 1, 2009