It's Friday. Today we'll take a closer look at Gov. Kathy Hochul's decision to revive the congestion pricing plan she put on hold in June. We'll also find out about a lawyer's effort on behalf of a man convicted of shooting a Black teenager in 1989.
Gov. Kathy Hochul is bringing back the congestion pricing program that would charge drivers who enter the busiest parts of Manhattan. But the tolls will be lower than those under the original version of the plan, which she canceled in June, saying that they were too high. Starting in early January — officials are aiming for Jan. 5 — drivers in most passenger cars will be charged $9 to enter Manhattan below 60th Street during peak hours, down from the previously approved rate of $15. Hochul's decision raised a variety of questions, including whether the lower tolls could generate the $15 billion needed for mass transit repairs — and whether President-elect Donald Trump could kill the plan when he takes office 15 days after target date for the program. I put some of those questions to Winnie Hu, who has covered congestion pricing for more than a decade, going back to Michael Bloomberg's administration. Why a $9 toll for most passenger cars? Because $9 was the smallest amount that officials have already studied. They looked at tolls between $9 and $23 before deciding on $15. They do not have time for new studies of different price points if the tolls are to take effect before Trump has a chance to make good on his promise to kill congestion pricing. Hochul said on Thursday that the reduced tolls would save daily commuters nearly $1,500 annually, and that there would be discounts for drivers who make less than $50,000 a year. Will $9 tolls — 40 percent lower than originally planned — generate enough revenue for the repairs the M.T.A. says are needed? Hochul and M.T.A. officials say yes. They say it's enough to secure $15 billion in bonds, which is what the agency needs for repairs and upgrades to the transit system — projects like modernizing signals, extending the Second Avenue subway and making subway stations more accessible with elevators. But it has yet to be seen how much revenue the reduced tolls will actually generate. In any case, officials indicated that they would not change the tolls for at least three years. Can Trump stop congestion pricing if he decided to? He could try, but legal and transportation experts say it would not be easy to block a congestion program that is up and running. He could try to retract federal approval or threaten to withhold federal funds for New York City, but those moves would probably lead to lengthy battles in court. This week, five House Republicans representing parts of New York City and its suburbs wrote to Trump, urging him to block congestion pricing. Hochul said on Thursday that her decision to revive the tolls was not motivated by Trump's re-election. "I'm not driven by the calendar of when people are elected or not elected," she said. She noted that New York officials have been working closely with the Biden administration to get final approval for congestion pricing, and the Federal Highway Administration "is working expeditiously to finalize the needed steps" for federal approval of the updated plan, according to a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Transportation. There are at least nine lawsuits against congestion pricing. What happens to them now? They're still pending, and some opponents of congestion pricing are mobilizing again. Randy Mastro, a lawyer representing the state of New Jersey, wrote to the judge handling the case asking for a decision. Mastro said that merely lowering the tolls would not address problems with the environmental review, which the Federal Highway Administration signed off on before Hochul put the original plan on hold. There are also two lawsuits from groups that support congestion pricing and sued Hochul for putting the plan on hold after she did so in June. Justice Arthur Engoron, who is handling the two cases, set today as the deadline for the governor's lawyers to submit briefs explaining why she paused it. WEATHER Today the sky will turn gradually from cloudy to sunny, with a high near 59 and a gentle breeze. Tonight will be breezy with a low in the mid-40s. ALTERNATE-SIDE PARKING In effect until Nov. 28 (Thanksgiving Day). The latest New York news
Fire-related news
Animals in the city
Other news
We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times. Lawyer challenges conviction in 1989 killing of a Black teen
It's been 35 years since the death of Yusuf Hawkins, a Black 16-year-old, set off months of protests led by the Rev. Al Sharpton and other public figures. Now Joseph Fama, who was convicted of shooting Hawkins during a melee with white teenagers, will get a chance to present new evidence that he hopes will prove his innocence. Fama, 53, has spent nearly two-thirds of his life behind bars. He has long insisted that the authorities, under pressure for a conviction, blamed him for the murder. "This guy got framed," said Fama's lawyer, Justin Bonus. Bonus said that Fama had not been part of the mob that attacked Hawkins and that someone else had fired the fatal shot. He also said that a dozen people had provided sworn statements or testimony to back up Fama's claim of innocence. Fama has already had lost two appeals, and two requests for parole have been turned down. A conference will be held next week to set a date for a hearing on the new evidence. Brooklyn prosecutors brushed off the appeal as a rehash of failed legal claims. In court papers filed in opposition to Fama's motion for the hearing, they said that Fama's motion "presented no new, credible evidence that he is actually innocent." They also noted that Fama had "confessed without remorse" to two jailhouse informants that he had killed Hawkins simply for being Black. Bonus said the investigation into Fama had been tainted by the involvement of Louis Scarcella, a now-retired Police Department homicide detective whose dishonest work on murder cases in the 1980s and '90s has been cited in numerous exonerations that have cost the city and state millions of dollars. Bonus asserted that Scarcella had helped steer the investigation toward charging Fama with the killing, despite evidence that the shot had been fired by another local teenager. Scarcella declined to comment. METROPOLITAN DIARY Fig jam
Dear Diary: A buddy from my life drawing class brought me a small jar of fig marmalade made from the bountiful fig tree in his yard. At the end of class, I placed the jar in my portfolio and headed to the Museum of Modern Art for back-to-back screenings of "The Godfather" and "The Godfather Part II." The person checking bags at the entrance asked me what was in the jar. Figs, I said. After checking at the desk, he told me that I couldn't bring the jar inside and that they couldn't hold it for me. "It was a gift," I pleaded. "I can't throw it away." As I stood there trying to figure out what to do, a man behind me in the line spoke up. "You have to find a place to hide it and pick it up later," he said. I went outside. Looking across the street, I saw several large planters holding good-sized bushes in front of a hotel entrance. I chose one that was away from any traffic. While pretending to make a call, I placed the jar well out of sight behind the bush. When the movies were over hours later, I returned to find the jar untouched. I picked it up and headed home. To that stranger: Thanks for the tip. — Joe Giordano Illustrated by Agnes Lee. Send submissions here and read more Metropolitan Diary here. Glad we could get together here. See you Monday. — J.B. P.S. Here's today's Mini Crossword and Spelling Bee. You can find all our puzzles here. Makaelah Walters and Ed Shanahan contributed to New York Today. You can reach the team at nytoday@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox.
|
N.Y. Today: Congestion pricing is revived
November 15, 2024
0
