NYLCV issued the following statement regarding the agreement to include congestion pricing in the state budget.
Julie Tighe, President of the New York League of Conservation Voters, said, “NYLCV commends Governor Cuomo, Speaker Heastie, Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins and the legislature for including congestion pricing in the state budget. New York is taking a bold step forward by enacting the first in the nation congestion pricing plan. Beyond generating much needed revenue for mass transit, congestion pricing will reduce traffic, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions, and can result in improved public health. Congestion pricing can and should be a policy cornerstone to transform our transportation system – now the number one source of greenhouse gas emissions – and will help fight our climate crisis along with our transit crisis. After ten years of advocacy, we recently announced that congestion pricing was such a major priority that we are double scoring legislators’ support for it as part of our 2019 State Environmental Scorecard. We look forward to working with the state and city as congestion pricing is implemented.”