UPDATED NOTE: The link to sign the petition in the original post was not correct. It has now been updated correctly.
State Senator Martin Golden and Assembly members Alec Brook-Krasny and Nicole Malliotakis renewed their call for all Brooklynites that are Staten Island bound via the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge three or more times a month get a 58% discount from the soon to be $16 toll for the inter-borough bridge crossing.
The call for the discount comes as the MTA readies to increase subway and toll fares next month. The discount the lawmakers proposed for EZ-Pass holders is identical to the discount plan currently in place for the Port Authority Bridges connecting Staten Island and New Jersey, giving both precedent for a discount of this nature and statistical data based on the current plan on the PA crossing.
“The MTA has once again decided to balance their books on our backs, raising fare and tolls, again. Sixteen dollars a day to get to work, or school, or visit a loved one, is, quite literally, highway robbery,” said Golden. “This proposal is fair, fiscally sound, and has been in use on other crossings in our area. The time for this type of discount plan was yesterday, so I urge the MTA, and my colleagues in government, to enact this plan as soon as possible.”
“No one should have to pay $16 to travel from one borough to another in the city in which they live. The MTA should follow lead of Port Authority and institute a multi-trip discount on the Verrazano Bridge for residents who use the crossing regularly to work, attend school, or visit friends and family,” said Malliotakis.
“I join Senator Golden and my colleagues in calling upon the MTA to seriously consider this proposal of enacting what the Port Authority has in effect on its bridges of a reduced fare for three trips in one month over the Verrazano Bridge,” said Brook-Krasny. “It’s a fair proposal and will do a great deal to ease the financial burden which has been placed upon the residents of Bay Ridge & Dyker Heights. I will work with my colleagues to ensure that this proposal is enacted.”
All three elected officials are asking for residents across the city to visit www.TheTollsAreTooDamnHigh.com and sign a petition showing support this plan. They are also urging residents to call their local elected officials, and the MTA, and ask them to sign on.
