President Davis Speaks on Congestion Pricing at MTA Public Hearing

MARCH 4 – Appearing before the MTA Board in a public comment period on the issue of the forthcoming congestion pricing plan, TWU Local 100 President Richard Davis said the MTA had failed to deliver on more transit service before rolling out congestion pricing.

“We need more transit service to persuade more New Yorkers to use the transit system. That’s the bottom line,” he said.

He said the MTA needs to prioritize fixing and improving the transit system before burdening toll payers with the new $15 fee to enter the congestion pricing zone below 60th Street in Manhattan.

He also told MTA management that the Authority is failing to prioritize safety, and that imposing additional financial burdens on the transit workforce would be counterproductive. “That’s essentially milking the cow before it’s even fed,” he told MTA Chair Janno Lieber and other agency managers.

He called for flexibility in tolling so that transit workers would not get penalized by having to pay the new fee for coming to work.