Could Orange County residents get discounts to cross the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge?
To ease the pain caused by congestion pricing, Orange County residents would receive discounts to cross the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge and pass through the Harriman toll on the New York State Thruway under a plan introduced by a Lower Hudson Valley Democrat.
The discounts would cost nearly $6 million and would come out of the $252 billion state budget currently being negotiated in Albany.
Extending to Orange County residents the same Cuomo Bridge discount available to Westchester and Rockland residents is not a new idea. But the $2.9 million addition has failed to make it into prior budgets.
This is the first time the Harriman toll discount, with an estimated cost of $3 million, has been floated. Both measures were introduced by state Sen. James Skoufis and managed to make it into the Senate budget being considered by Gov. Kathy Hochul.
"Orange County residents don't have a viable or reliable train service: infrequent schedules, no one-seat ride into Manhattan, and enormous swaths of the county without a proximate station,' said Skoufis, a Democrat whose district includes portions of Rockland and Orange counties. 'As a result, most residents need to drive into Manhattan − they have neither a realistic nor convenient choice.'
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's $9 toll for drivers who enter Manhattan at 60th Street revived longstanding frustration with the limited public transportation options for commuters living west of the Hudson River in Rockland and Orange counties.
In February, MTA chairman and CEO Janno Lieber acknowledged the problem when pressed by Assemblyman Chris Eachus, a Democrat whose district includes northern Rockland County and eastern Orange County.
'We acknowledge the fact that rail service on the west of Hudson stinks,' Lieber said during a transportation hearing in Albany. 'It is run by New Jersey Transit. The tracks are owned by the freight railroad. We have no ability to alter that for you, much as we would like to.'
Westchester and Rockland residents with E-ZPass pay $5.40 to cross the Cuomo Bridge, $1.35 less than what others pay. About 235,000 residents are enrolled in the program.
The Harriman toll costs E-ZPass users $1.25. The size of the proposed discount has not been determined but Skoufis said it would mirror the discount available to residents of Grand Island when they use the bridge of the same name in western New York. Grand Island residents pay 9 cents to cross the bridge while others pay $1.
Discounts require the approval of the board of directors for the Thruway Authority, which depends on toll revenue to maintain 570 miles of highway from New York City to Buffalo. The agency does not receive federal, state or local funding.
Discount: Westchester, Rockland drivers: Recertify for Cuomo Bridge discount or you'll lose it
The Thruway already has a Harriman Commuter Plan for southbound commuters. Those with a minimum of 35 trips per month pay 58 cents, a $1.61 discount off the $2.19 Tolls by Mail rate at the Harriman gantry. If they're under 35 trips, they pay 58 cents for each trip not taken.
Also on Skoufis' wish list is $200,000 for an expansion of the Chester Park & Ride, where commuters can link up with Coach USA buses into New York City. The lot, which is owned by the state, has space for 75 vehicles.
And Skoufis wants to revive plans for the Secaucus Loop, a piece of the Gateway Project that would give residents of Orange and Rockland counties a one-seat ride into Manhattan by way of a new Hudson River tunnel to Penn Station.
Tolls: NY Thruway targeting serial toll evaders after $70M loss. Inside the plan to force payment
'Many federal representatives, in particular, have spoken nonstop about the importance of this project yet have done little to nothing to advance this priority,' Skoufis said. 'The Senate budget proposal would inject some much-needed financing and attention into this long overdue project."
Skoufis' proposal calls for $10 million to fund a portion of the preliminary design of the project.
Republicans and Democrats in the two counties have long found common ground when it comes to commuting issues. Last year, Rockland County Executive Ed Day, a Republican, joined New Jersey in suing the MTA over congestion pricing, calling it an unfair tax on his constituency.
In February, Skoufis and the entire Orange County delegation pushed to end the county's association with the MTA by exempting residents from paying taxes that support the transit agency.
Lieber and Hochul have pushed back, citing statistics that show nearly 80% of Rockland and Orange commuters to Manhattan's business district take public transportation.
In January, Hochul proposed several initiatives to improve public transportation west of the Hudson, including the expansion of ferry and parking options. The governor also wants to add shuttle bus connections between Metro-North's Port Jervis Line and Woodbury Commons, Legoland, Storm King, Renaissance Fair and Stewart Airport.
Thomas C. Zambito covers energy, transportation and economic growth for the USA Today Network's New York State team. He's won dozens of state and national writing awards from the Associated Press, Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Deadline Club and others during a decades-long career that's included stops at the New York Daily News, The Star-Ledger of Newark and The Record of Hackensack. He can be reached at tzambito@lohud.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Orange County resident discount to cross Mario Cuomo Bridge proposed
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