Transit Funding
Streetsblog Basics
Ravitch: Tolls on Every Major Road Needed, Just to Keep Transpo Afloat
Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch opens his new report on transportation funding in his characteristically blunt fashion:
November 18, 2010
Is Cuomo’s Spending Cap the Real Threat to Transit Funding?
With the threat of future raids on the MTA's dedicated funds looming on the horizon, I spoke with Fiscal Policy Institute executive director Frank Mauro to continue our investigation of how to keep transit funding secure.
November 12, 2010
Cuomo Wants Budget Fix ASAP, So Another MTA Raid May Be Coming Soon
If Andrew Cuomo has his way, the state legislature and Governor Paterson will close the state's $315 million shortfall before he takes office. The push from the governor-elect means that in the next two months, New York state's current leadership may again determine whether to close a budget gap by raiding MTA dedicated funds. Nearly $20 million for transit could be on the line.
November 10, 2010
Can Andrew Cuomo Stop Albany From Raiding Transit Again?
Yesterday, City Council transportation committee chair Jimmy Vacca and leading transportation advocates sent a letter to New York state's current leadership urging them not to raid the MTA's dedicated funds to close an impending $315 million budget deficit.
November 9, 2010
Vacca and Advocates to Albany: No More Transit Raids
Transit advocates and City Council transportation committee chair Jimmy Vacca are sounding the alarm about potential transit funding raids before the year is out. A $315 million hole has opened up in the state budget, and unless elected officials change the way they balance the state's books, straphangers could end up paying for Albany's fiscal mess -- again.
November 8, 2010
Suburban State Senate Candidates Campaign Against MTA Payroll Tax
With the MTA at least $9 billion short on funding for its five-year capital plan, New Yorkers who ride buses and subways should be counting on legislators to secure a new revenue stream for transit. But after tomorrow's elections, the first transit fight in Albany may not be over new revenue at all. Repealing the payroll mobility tax, passed along strict party lines as part of the 2009 MTA funding package, is a top priority for many suburban State Senate candidates, especially Republicans.
November 1, 2010
State DOT Delays Funding for NYC Bike-Ped Projects [Updated]
Last week the Tri-State Transportation Campaign's Michelle Ernst reported that an important funding stream for bike and pedestrian projects is currently stalled.
November 1, 2010
Andrew Cuomo’s Transit Plan: Worse Than Nothing?
With November 2 just 11 days away, it's probably time to concede that Andrew Cuomo won't offer any constructive ideas for solving the state's transit funding crisis before election day. After avoiding taking any stands while outlining his infrastructure plan, Cuomo happily joined in the gubernatorial debate's MTA-bashfest, trotting out the old and discredited "two sets of books" line. Yesterday, the former HUD Secretary released his "urban agenda," in which the only item on transit calls, banally, for limiting service cuts if possible.
October 22, 2010
Why Transit Agencies Expand Capacity While They Cut Service
The past couple of years have been bittersweet for American transit riders. While the Obama administration's TIGER grant program and livability initiatives have spurred investments in new streetcar and bus projects, service cuts and fare hikes have been the order of the day in cities large and small, as transit agencies cope with shrinking revenues brought on by the recession. It can be frustrating for transit users to witness the construction of expensive new facilities while they’re paying more for less service.
October 22, 2010
Albany Grabs Another $16.7 Million From MTA
Last week, the MTA announced it lost another $16.7 million to an Albany raid [PDF]. Because of lower-than-expected federal assistance for Medicaid, Albany instituted an across-the-board budget sweep of 1.1 percent, cutting state spending and also siphoning off theoretically separate revenue streams dedicated to specific programs and agencies, like the MTA. It's a reminder that the state's budget crisis is dragging the MTA and New York City transit riders down with it.
October 5, 2010