Statement on MTA Budget Shortfall
January 27, 2009
(New York, NY) After years of mismanagement and fiscal irresponsibility, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has accumulated a staggering budget shortfall which now threatens the millions of New Yorkers who rely on mass transit. While it is absolutely essential that we take immediate and decisive action to reduce proposed fare hikes and potential loss of services and jobs, our Conference has strong concerns about some of the proposals which have thus far been offered to address the budget gap.
Our Conference will be submitting our own amendments to the draft legislation prepared by the Governor which will provide for greater measures of public oversight and transparency. The MTA must provide the honest accounting that New Yorkers deserve for the public to have a sufficient say in how that money is being used and full knowledge of what it is being used for.
While the proposal to modify the recommended tolls on the East River Bridges from $5 to $2 warrants strong consideration and will be discussed within our Conference, it would be unacceptable if straphangers were forced to bear the burden of the reduced toll. Additionally, it is unclear if that plan would achieve the necessary financial targets of reducing the proposed fare hike from 23% to 8%, increasing services, especially bus service outside of Manhattan and protecting jobs. If reducing the proposed East River Bridges toll results in higher fare increases, fewer service add-ons and layoffs then it may not achieve the intended goals any toll would have to meet for it to be a prudent option.
By Monday, we will post the draft legislation submitted by the Governor on our website www.nymtaideas.org and invite public comment on how to achieve the necessary investment in the infrastructure of the MTA which will preserve access to services, protect jobs and enhance the public’s confidence that state resources will be spent wisely, while maintaining the principle of shared sacrifice among all sectors.
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Posted by News LI Editor · Filed Under Business
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[…] Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith issued his own statement today (so far, only available online here), which says that lowering bridge tolls from $5 to $2 is worth consideration — but not if […]
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