Congestion Price = Tax Hike

As much as I'm a supporter of improved mass transit and reduced emissions so that people will not have to suffer from the effects of asthma or other respiratory ailments, the idea of a congestion pricing scheme is nothing more than a confiscatory tax in sheep's clothes.

The Bloomberg inspired plan would impose a $8 per day fee on all vehicles entering Manhattan below 86th Street (or any other arbitrarily designated area. If you work for a company in Midtown and do not have access to mass transit, you'll be forced to drive in every day and get hit with an $8 fee for the "privilege" of coming to work.

That fee adds up. If you work on average of 240 days a year (50 weeks, five days a week, 2 weeks vacation, and 10 days of company holidays), you'll be hit with a tax of $1,920.

That's nearly $2,000 for the promise of less congestion in the City. If you are suddenly hit with a pay cut of $2,000, would you consider working in the City, or would you look elsewhere? I think you'd consider working elsewhere.

I'm fortunate enough to live where mass transit options are plentiful. NJ Transit trains and buses are easily accessible. The same can't be said for hundreds of other neighborhoods and communities around the region. Instead of an hour commute by car, mass transit commutes might be double that because of the need to make multiple transfers.

Then, there's the question of reliability and capacity of existing mass transit to handle the influx of new people who are trying to avoid getting hit with the additional fees. It simply isn't there, and wont be there for at least several years. The NJ Transit system is at capacity on the Northeast Corridor into Penn Station, which means it is simply not possible to cram any more trains into Manhattan during the rush hour. LIRR service is often plagued with delays and service to the far reaches of the Island is insufficient, and yet those would be many of the people most affected by the commute.

Then, you have the super-commuters - those who travel by car 3 or more hours each way to get to their jobs in Manhattan simply because they cannot afford to live closer. They, too, would be hurt the most by this plan.

It seems that Spitzer and Bloomberg are all gung ho over this plan, despite the fact that it would likely hurt those folks who can least afford it. Manhattan is already one of the least car-friendly places in the US, given the relative lack of parking and gas stations (which keep getting turned into housing or office space because the land is simply too valuable to be a gas station).

As much as I'm loathe to call for an increase in taxes, the far more efficient method of raising money for mass transit and transportation programs is a dedicated motor fuels tax. If Bloomberg and Spitzer are that interested in reducing cars in Manhattan, raise the gas tax - perhaps raise it more in Manhattan than elsewhere in the state and provide a major break to cabbies and car service drivers whose profits are directly affected by the gas prices.