New York Construction Report staff writer
New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority says it will still be able to fund billions of dollars’ worth of projects despite toll pricing adjustments and a delay from when it was originally scheduled to be implemented this past summer.
New York City’s congestion pricing program for drivers entering Manhattan south of 60th Street took effect Jan. 5.
“Thanks to congestion pricing, MTA Construction & Development will undertake a generational investment to transform public transit in New York,” said MTA Construction & Development President Jamie Torres-Springer. “We’re ready to get these projects started and we’re ready to deliver them better, faster, and cheaper than ever before.”
The final version of congestion pricing drops the toll for most passenger cars during peak hours from the planned $15 to $9 for now, but MTA officials say that won’t be a problem for funding projects, as the project funding will be coming from $15 billion in bonds that will be paid down with the collected tolls.
Eighty percent of the revenue generated will go to capital improvements on NYC Subways and Buses, 10% to Metro-North Railroad and 10% percent to the Long Island Rail Road. Additional projects supported by congestion pricing funds are detailed in an online summary and map.
A phased-in toll plan that starts at 40of the eventual toll enables the MTA to issue $15 billion in bonds to fund the MTA’s 2020-2024 Capital Plan and advance critical capital projects helping subway, bus, commuter rail riders and motorists alike.
After the pause on congestion pricing was lifted, the MTA exercised the option to purchase 265 zero-emission buses on Nov. 27.
With congestion pricing having begun, the MTA has already started to advance additional capital projects, with these five the first to move:
- Second Avenue Subway Phase 2: The MTA issued a request-for-proposals to the contracting community for Phase 2’s major tunneling contract on Dec. 24.
- Modernization of signals line in Brooklyn: The MTA issued a request for qualifications to the contracting community on Dec. 30. The modernization will allow the MTA to operate trains more frequently and more reliably on the line serving 640,000 people per day.
- Subway station accessibility upgrades: The MTA issued a request for qualifications to the contracting community on Dec. 30 to upgrade three subway stations, Gates Av , Briarwood and Parsons , to make them accessible to all in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Reconstruction of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge’s ramps in Brooklyn: The MTA issued a request-for-proposals to the contracting community on Dec. 16.
- Dehumidification of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge’s main cables to extend their life: The MTA issued a request for proposals to the contracting community on Dec. 20.
Congestion Pricing moving forward also unlocks critical investments in MTA Bridges & Tunnels that were had been put on hold pending the start of the program.
