Time, Money and Congestion

On Monday night, the city council passed a measure urging the Albany legislators to vote for the approval of congestion pricing. This means the city will charge an eight dollar fee to enter Manhattan below 60th Street. Great, right? Who doesn’t want fewer cars in the city? They are noisy, polluting, and everywhere. It has been promised that the revenue collected will be used to improve the bus and subway system. If you live in the outer part of the outer boroughs and travel daily into Manhattan, it may not be so great. “Commuters in our city will be able to benefit immediately from mass transit improvements that you will see literally within months,” said Mayor Bloomberg at a news conference. I live between the Neptune Avenue and Avenue X stops on the “F” line. The ride itself takes 45 minutes, plus the walk to the train and from the train to my destination. The closest express train is too far away for the shorter ride to equal a shorter total trip. Short of adding an express train, improvements to the system will do little to change anything for residents who ride this line. Two hours of travel each day is exhausting. As a remedy I purchased a Vespa. Riding along the Belt Parkway into Manhattan, travel time is cut in half. However, the city has said there are no plans as of now to charge reduced fees for scooters or motorcycles. Now we wait to see if Albany will follow the city council’s lead. Eight dollars a day just to go to work or school or two hours or more of traveling? I imagine there will be many drivers asking themselves the same question, debating what is more important, time or money.