New York State's $500 million barrier-free tolling initiative at Metropolitan Transportation Authority-operated bridges and tunnels is moving full speed ahead with a planned completion date set for the end of 2017, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday.
Cuomo said Wednesday electronic tolling, which uses sensors and cameras to charge vehicles, will begin in January at the Hugh L. Carey Brooklyn Battery and Queens Midtown Tunnels. Motorists who don't participate in the E-ZPass program will have a photo taken of their license plate and get a bill in the mail. New MTA regulations are slated to go into effect in mid-February that increase fines for toll evaders and the New York Department of Motor Vehicles will be issuing suspensions for three violations over the course of five years.
"Open road tolling streamlines commutes, reduces inconvenience, and, along with bolstered security measures and new LED lighting and art, reimagines New York's crossings as part of our infrastructure overhaul to meet the needs of current and future generations of New Yorkers," said Cuomo in a statement. "This project is a transformative investment in our future that revolutionizes statewide transportation and helps us build a new New York."
Additional crossings that will see automatic tolling in 2017 include the Whitestone Bridge in the summer, Throgs Neck Bridge in the fall, RFK Triborough Bridge in summer, Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in the summer, Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge in the spring and Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge in the spring. The $500 million project is earmarked out of the MTA's $27 billion capital budget with the state also allocating $37 million annually for security and $100 million of federal funds for resiliency measures.
"These improvements will enhance traffic flow, reduce congestion, and decrease commute times making it safer for New Yorkers to get where they need to go," MTA chairman and CEO Tom Prendergast said in a statement. "The accelerated schedule we are undertaking to modernize all of our facilities in 2017 underscores the Governor's commitment to investing in New York's transportation network to meet the needs of a growing city."
