Senate President Urges New York Officials to Include New Jersey Representation on Congestion Pricing Panel
TRENTON – Senate President Richard J. Codey today called on New York officials to consider revising their membership on the newly formed New York City Traffic Mitigation Commission to include representatives from New Jersey, which sends an average of 250,000 commuters across the river to Manhattan every day.
“This is a collective failure on the part of New York’s leadership to recognize New Jersey’s important role in this decision making process,” said Sen. Codey. “The stakes involved in this process are far too important to be governed by purely parochial political considerations. I would hope that the powers that be will seriously reconsider their appointments and find a way to incorporate New Jersey’s perspective into this massive undertaking.”
The panel, announced yesterday, includes 17 individuals representing Manhattan, the outer boroughs, Long Island and the State of New York and excludes any New Jersey residents. Sen. Codey reached out to New York City officials by phone yesterday to convey these concerns, but was informed that the appointments had already been made and were soon to be announced.
“We’re not asking for preferential treatment, just fair representation for our commuters who have an enormous impact on New York’s economy. While it’s clear that officials have made it a point to include representatives from the outer boroughs and the surrounding New York area, New Jersey has been completely left out of the equation.
“Reducing congestion and its environmental impact is in everyone’s best interests, but we want to make sure that whatever plan gets hammered out is done in an equitable manner and doesn’t place an unfair burden on New Jersey’s commuters. A large portion of New Jersey commuters, unlike commuters in the surrounding New York area, do not have an available mass transit alternative to get into Manhattan. We need somebody who recognizes this key factor and will help convey those concerns during the planning stages of this project.”