The Return Of The Congestion Pricing Saga

You could never count Luke Skywalker out in a George Lucas movie and neither can one give up hope on congestion pricing in New York City. It is being used all over Europe and somewhat in Southeast Asia, and is determined to make its debut in New York. The only thing is it might have to take on a different look to pass the test up in Albany.

From The NY Daily News:

City Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said it's too soon to eulogize congestion pricing, which died behind closed doors in Albany last month.

"Most big things in New York don't go through the first time around," Sadik-Khan said at a panel discussion at the Regional Plan Association's annual conference.

"At the end of the day, the failure on congestion pricing that occurred last month was just a setback," said a fellow panelist, former Deputy Mayor Marc Shaw. "I think it will be reconsidered in the near future."

He predicted congestion pricing would come back in a somewhat different and "purer" form: tolls at the East River bridges and across 60th St.

No matter the percentage of people that decry congestion pricing and tolls in general, there is going to have to be a way to solve three traffic problems of ours. One is the pollution another is funding mass-transit and last but not least reducing the congestion (duh) in the city. Asthma rates are ridiculous, building projects such as the 2nd Avenue subway and getting as many unnecessary cars out of the city are prerogatives that must be accomplished. So if Bloomberg's vision didn't work out, something else must have to be tried.

A Miracle Is Coming For the 34th St. Gridlock

The long running joke about crossing town on a bus is that you can generally walk faster from river to river than by swiping your Metrocard on the bus. Traffic is so gridlocked that 34th Street looks like a nightmare at rush hour, especially with the Queens-Midtown tunnel being on one side. Well traffic nightmares might turn into traffic miracles, because the Dept of Transportation is reinventing the street.

From Streetsblog:

Outlining New York's plans, Sadik-Khan previewed big changes for some of the city's major corridors.

The block between 5th and 6th Aves. would be reserved for buses and people, with cars traveling away from the CBD on either side

34th Street, Manhattan: DOT will repave and restripe for five lanes between Third and Ninth Avenues by the end of this year, with painted bus lanes on the north and south sides and three auto lanes in the center. Service hours will also be extended. Phase 2 calls for a 34th Street Transitway, closing the street to cars between Fifth and Sixth and installing pedestrian plazas. On either side of that block, there would be two lanes for cars heading in one direction -- toward the rivers -- while on the other half of the street, buses would have two extra-wide lanes separated from traffic. In other words, buses would constitute the only through traffic on 34th Street. According to Sadik-Khan, 34th Street BRT will eventually tie in to new East River ferry service (details to be announced next week). Here's the 34th St. slideshow.

Well it is almost river to river, but the changes will be in the area that counts the most. Dedicated bus lanes will actually make the buses move, instead of idling for the majority of their trek in either direction at the current time. On top of that, the plaza is a welcome sight for that part of Midtown, especially since outdoor lunchtime seating at Harold Square is limited there. Also in the works are two dedicated bus lanes for 5th Avenue in the heart of Midtown and an extension for the Madison Avenue dedicated lanes. NYPD will also be dedicating a unit to make sure things move smoothly.

Kudos to Sadik-Khan and the DoT for doing something that makes sense for the crazy Manhattan traffic!