Group Renews Push To Toll East River Crossings

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - A new effort is under way to implement tolls on the East River crossings.

As WCBS 880's Paul Murnane reported, they're not calling it congestion pricing, but the the plan sounds similar.

The plan, much like Mayor Michael Bloomberg's failed 2008 effort at congestion pricing would add tolls to the now-free East River crossings.

Supporters of the Move NY campaign said the proposal is all about fairness. The plan would implement a $5 toll or $7.50 cash on the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg and 59th Street bridges.

The rate would be lower on other crossings and the toll would drop by $5 on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge under the proposal.

Drivers heading into the heart of Manhattan must pay, while those in areas with fewer transit options would pay less, Murnane reported.

"Oh no, really? I don't know about that," a cabbie told Murnane. "Oh no, that's not good, not good."

"It would be just great. Anything that would deter more people from coming in," another driver said.

"Don't I pay enough taxes and everything else?" griped another driver.

The most recent proposal would also require approval from Albany, something Bloomberg's plan failed to achieve 5 years ago.

Move NY said final details of its plan would not be made until after a series of public forums next year. The group said its plan differs from congestion pricing because the revenues would go towards Metropolitan Transportation Authority capital projects and to upgrades for bridges and roadways.

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