The federal government was already slow to cooperate with a plan to charge automobile drivers for entering certain parts of Manhattan, but with coronavirus commanding so much attention, the project isn't likely to move forward any time soon.
"New York’s congestion pricing plan is on ice thanks in part to the coronavirus pandemic — and the delay could imperil the MTA’s plans to overhaul the city’s mass transit networks," reports Clayton Guse.
"The plan to toll vehicles in Manhattan south of 60th St. is intended to fund $15 billion of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s $51.5 billion five-year capital plan, which includes the rapid modernization of delay-inducing subway signals and accessibility additions to 66 subway stations," explains Guse of the transit planning connection to the congestion pricing scheme proposed for automobile drivers on the streets of Manhattan.
As noted by Guse, the congestion pricing scheme had already encountered delays while seeking federal environmental approval for the plan, but the coronavirus adds a new layer of difficulty. "Now, with the feds in the trenches of a pandemic, transit honchos don’t expect congestion pricing to be a priority for officials in the Trump administration," according to Guse.
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Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
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Journal of the American Planning Association