NYC proposing $8 driving tax for Manhattan

[gregtheripper]

Discuss. (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070503/us_nm/newyorkcity_traffic_dc)

I think it's a good idea.

[ekitel]

who cares, Manhattan sucks, Kings county is the place to be...

[Roody]

I'm wishing they had done something other than a user fee. $8 is a lot of money for some people, nothing at all for the lucky few. Some kind of allotment system would have been better, IMO. Disguised revenue schemes like this increase income inequalities, and that's a bad thing for everybody.

I do agree with the principle of curtailing car traffic in Manhattan and other city centers.

[texasphil]

Make the poor walk and the rich won't have to sit in traffic. It's happening lots of other places with toll roads. Wait till the gov't figures out that that little chip that's on my car windshield sticks to everything like bikes and pedestrians. It's all billable, ka-ching, hasn't this turned into a great country! And when poor and middle class people are forced to use mass transit it will have to be expanded, which will require a fair hike! Fantastic..So much sarcasm in one little post.

[Hobartlemagne]

They could set up traffic lights timed to limit entry. People who dont want to wait can take mass transit.

[Dahon.Steve]

I'm wishing they had done something other than a user fee. $8 is a lot of money for some people, nothing at all for the lucky few. Some kind of allotment system would have been better, IMO. Disguised revenue schemes like this increase income inequalities, and that's a bad thing for everybody.

I do agree with the principle of curtailing car traffic in Manhattan and other city centers.

If you're driving into midtown Manhattan each day, you are not on welfare. Parking on Times Squre will set you back about $25 dollars per day! The poor will not bare the cost because they are not driving into 42nd street during rush hour. Trust me.

[gregtheripper]

If you're driving into midtown Manhattan each day, you are not on welfare. Parking on Times Squre will set you back about $25 dollars per day! The poor will not bare the cost because they are not driving into 42nd street during rush hour. Trust me.

Agreed. The only people who commute into midtown are the ones who can afford it. When I lived in New Jersey, I felt like the public transit options to NYC were very good (since it's essentially the focal point of the whole system sans the Atlantic city line). It's not as much a class issue as it is a practicality issue; driving into the city can be a real nightmare. I was suprised at how many commuters within the city itself use cars however. I feel like that could be a product of poor service in the past, or a lack of service to areas such as Staten Island, and such. I could see someone not wanting to take the subway or the bus purely because they rode it for so long. If some of that money from an entry fee could be siphoned off into the transit system, however, that could help. This is being very optimistic, however..

[Roody]

If you're driving into midtown Manhattan each day, you are not on welfare. Parking on Times Squre will set you back about $25 dollars per day! The poor will not bare the cost because they are not driving into 42nd street during rush hour. Trust me.
If that's the case I have no problem with it. (I'm sure Bloomberg is just waiting for my go-ahead!;) )