Michael Bloomberg is arguing that lawmakers should reconsider congestion pricing now that the M.T.A. is facing further cutbacks, and the environment is still an issue here.
Even if those factors were enough to sway some popular opinion on the issue, one factor still in Bloomberg’s way is Sheldon Silver, the Assembly speaker who, last night, argued that the it was the mayor himself who is making traffic worse in the city.
On NY1 last night, Silver said, “[T]he mayor has added congestion by narrowing streets, by putting benches in the middle of the city—and this was the same mayor who talked about congestion when he was going to build a football stadium in the middle of the most congested part of the city. They’ve now put park benches in the middle of Times Square, reduced Broadway traffic up and downtown from four lanes down to one or two, and lower Broadway down to one lane. So, he’s created congestion just in these traffic patterns that have taken place.”
When the show’s moderator said Bloomberg has argued that these changes “improve traffic flow,” Silver responded, “I don’t believe so, and I don’t think any New Yorker believes it.”
When the moderator clarified, and said Bloomberg argued the changes improved “pedestrian traffic,” Silver took his opposition one step further.
“He makes that statement in Copenhagen. Let him stand on 42nd street and tell every car going by.”
