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Albany Has Already Saddled the MTA With More Debt Than 30 Nations
As Albany contemplates paying for the MTA capital program by borrowing as much as $15 billion, it's worth pausing to examine the debt load straphangers are already shouldering. To put it in perspective, the MTA carries more debt than Bolivia, Tanzania, and Luxembourg combined, according to numbers compiled by the Straphangers Campaign. The MTA owes more than at least 30 nations, including several with populations much larger than New York City.
February 12, 2015
De Blasio: Albany Failing to Meet Its Obligation to NYC Transit Riders
Mayor de Blasio unveiled his preliminary budget proposal this afternoon. In an address outlining the broad strokes of the budget, de Blasio called out Albany for neglecting the MTA and warned that inaction on federal transportation funding could undercut the Vision Zero program.
February 9, 2015
David Gantt Remains Transportation Chair, But It’s Carl Heastie’s Assembly
Surprising no one, the leadership of Carl Heastie's Assembly looks just about identical to Sheldon Silver's. After publicly voting in Heastie to succeed Silver as speaker on Tuesday, Assembly Dems announced top posts and committee chair positions yesterday. There were few changes to speak of, and as expected Rochester rep David Gantt will remain chair of the Assembly transportation committee.
February 5, 2015
Cuomo’s Transit Budget Is a Confusing Jumble of Raids and Transfers
It's state budget season! Governor Andrew Cuomo's executive budget is chock-a-block with raids of dedicated transit funds, questionable transfers, and toll cuts doled out as election-year favors. It's a mess that doesn't answer how the state will close the $15.2 billion gap in the MTA capital program.
February 5, 2015
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie: Good on Street Safety, Iffy on Transit
For the first time in two decades, the New York State Assembly has a new speaker. Assembly Democrats elected Carl Heastie of the Bronx to succeed longtime speaker Sheldon Silver, a week after Silver was indicted on federal corruption charges.
February 3, 2015
Tomorrow: Advocates Ask Albany to Guarantee Bike/Ped Funds
Nearly four dozen advocates from across the state will travel to Albany tomorrow to make the case for better policies to support walking and biking as budget hearings get underway in the state legislature. The push comes days after the Cuomo administration told legislators that while it is committed to active transportation, dedicated funding that would make up for shrinking federal funds isn't necessary.
February 2, 2015
DMV Revoked License of Driver Who Killed Allison Liao for Just 30 Days
The motorist who killed 3-year-old Allison Liao could be back behind the wheel before long, as the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles revoked his license for just 30 days.
January 30, 2015
Just a Reminder: Cuomo Can Take Charge of the MTA Whenever He Wants
At approximately 5 p.m. Monday, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that he had ordered the complete closure of New York City's bus and subway systems in the face of an oncoming snowstorm. If nothing else, it was a stark reminder that the transit system is not a political orphan. The MTA is, in fact, Cuomo's agency.
January 29, 2015
Last Call to Make Sure DMV Properly Refunds Biking Tickets
Last summer, we learned that the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles was charging motorist-only surcharges of $88, and applying motorist-only driver’s license penalty points, to cyclists who pled or were found guilty of traffic violations. Our law firm brought a class action to address DMV’s unlawful penalization of cyclists as if they were drivers.
January 27, 2015
DMV Revokes License of Driver Who Killed Allie Liao
Chris Robbins at Gothamist reports that the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles has revoked the license of Ahmad Abu-Zayedeh, who struck and killed 3-year-old Allie Liao in a Queens crosswalk in 2013. The decision by administrative law judge Sidney Fuchs reinforces the importance of DMV safety hearings as a venue to ensure that reckless drivers face consequences for killing other people.
January 21, 2015