Traffic
Streetsblog Basics
A Better Taxi Surcharge: More Congestion Reduction, Less Pain for Cab Drivers
A better, fairer for-hire vehicle surcharge would raise the fee when congestion is most intense and charge more for vehicles that spend longer in the congestion zone.
May 1, 2018
Coming Soon to NYC: Rolling Advertisements for Congestion Pricing
Elected officials may not have a handle on how valuable New York City street space is, but the private sector sure does.
April 26, 2018
Evidence From Boston That Uber Is Making Traffic Worse
Ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft are exacerbating rush-hour traffic jams in Boston, according to new research by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council.
February 8, 2018
Schaller: Curbing Uber “Idle Time” Key to Busting Manhattan Gridlock
A report published today by taxi savant Bruce Schaller pins Manhattan's current traffic meltdown squarely on the relentless growth in Uber, Lyft, and other app-based for-hire vehicles.
December 21, 2017
Unsustainable: Traffic 2018
New York is facing its most serious transportation challenge in decades. Subway reliability is way down, and the bus system is shedding riders at an alarming rate. And because transit is so unreliable, New York is accommodating growth in cars, in the form of the tens of thousands of Uber and Lyft vehicles we now find on our streets each day.
December 19, 2017
The Futility of de Blasio’s Meager Traffic Congestion Plan
The mayor's ideas have been tried before, without success. But even if the plan works as intended, the effect would be tiny because it doesn't attempt to reduce traffic volumes.
October 23, 2017
Top Legal Expert Concludes NYC Has Power to Toll Its Own Roads and Bridges
One of New York City’s preeminent jurists, Frederick A.O. Schwarz Jr., affirmed today that the city possesses full legal authority to toll its own roads and bridges and thus does not require state approval to implement congestion pricing.
July 6, 2017
Slower Subways Will Cost New Yorkers $1.4 Billion This Year
New Yorkers are already paying for Cuomo's deteriorating MTA in the form of lost time, increased pollution, and poorer health.
June 26, 2017
The Science Is Clear: More Highways Equals More Traffic. Why Are DOTs Still Ignoring It?
Numerous studies have documented the phenomenon known as induced demand in transportation: Basically, if you build highway lanes, more drivers will come. And yet, transportation agencies rarely account for this effect when planning road projects.
June 21, 2017
No, Traffic Congestion Is Not “Self-Correcting”
Calling congestion "self-correcting" is a convenient way to steer the subject away from congestion pricing. The argument is that drivers can bail when congestion "gets bad enough." Problem solved -- without collective (governmental) action requiring political leadership. Let's unpack that.
June 7, 2017