What's happening
This bill bans all tolls, fares, and fees on the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge, effective immediately.
Why it matters
Removes a financial burden. for anyone traveling over the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge, which could especially benefit daily commuters, low-income individuals, and local residents.
May impact funding. for bridge maintenance and transportation infrastructure, as toll revenues are often used for upkeep and improvements; alternate funding sources may need to be identified.
Could influence traffic patterns. with the removal of tolls, the bridge might see increased use, potentially altering congestion levels on surrounding roads and affecting travel times.
Sets a precedent. for eliminating user fees on key transportation routes, which could prompt similar proposals for other bridges or transit systems in New York or elsewhere.
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Who cares
Headline styles
End Cross Bay Bridge Toll
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
- Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
End Tolls on Cross Bay
In Assembly Committee · Corporations, Authorities And Commissions · Sponsor Stacey Pheffer Amato
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2486
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 25, 2019
Introduced by Sen. ADDABBO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions
AN ACT in relation to prohibiting the imposition and collection of a fare, toll, rental, rate, charge or other fee on the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Any fare, toll, rental, rate, charge or other fee on the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge shall cease to be levied and collected as of the effective date of this act.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03746-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act in relation to prohibiting the imposition and collection of a fare, toll, rental, rate, charge or other fee on the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge
Purpose of the bill
The purpose of this bill is to end the inequitable, unjustified and demonstrably burdensome toll on the Cross Bay Bridge, the only tolled intra-Borough bridge in our State. The Cross Bay Memorial Bridge carries Cross Bay Boulevard from Broad Channel in Jamaica Bay to the Rockaway Peninsula. Both sites, and their immediate environs, sit in the Borough and County of Queens. The local and regional economic impact of this toll has been imposed for far too long on the residents of Queens, thou- sands of whom are forced to pay a toll to go to work, drop off or pick up their kids from school, see a doctor, dine out, go for a day at the beach, or utilize social services. The toll has the impact of dividing communities, artificially creating economic barriers, hampering tourism and keeping the area most impacted by Superstorm Sandy from effecting a full and thorough economic recovery.
Summary of provisions
Section one adds that any fare, toll, rental, rate, charge or other fee on the Cross Bay Memorial Bridge shall cease to be levied and collected as of the effective date of this act.
Section two relates to the effective date.
Justification
The Cross Bay Memorial Bridge is the only tolled intra-Borough or intra-County bridge in our State.
In 1939, the New York City Parkway Authority built the Cross Bay Bridge and Parkway along with beach improvements in the Rockaways. This was part of a program to develop Jamaica Bay as a residential and recre- ational area, instead of following a previous City plan to develop the area as a large industrial port. The following year, the New York City Parkway Authority was consolidated with the Triborough Bridge Authority. In 1970, the consolidated TBTA completed the present Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge, a high-level fixed bridge, which permits boats to pass under it without the traffic delays caused by the lifting of a bascule bridge. The toll on the Cross Bay Bridge was implemented only to cover the cost of construction, and started at $0.10 per trip. The toll has since grown exponentially, to $4.25 per trip.
The Cross Bay Bridge toll stunts economic growth, dis-incentivizes free- dom of motion within a single Borough, and impacts the thousands of Queens residents who are required to pay this toll several times per day to conduct their daily lives. Residents often need to pay a two-way toll to work, go shopping or meet friends and family mere minutes from their house. The inequitable toll also keeps tourists from easy access to New York City's only real extended beachfront, unquestionably costing millions of dollars every year in tourism. The toll has outlived its original stated purpose of paying for the bridge, has absolutely no
stated current purpose besides supplementing the MTA's budget, and inequitably hinders the economy of a particular part of New York City.
Prior legislative history
2018: S. 6909-A - Referred to Senate Corporations, Authorities and Commissions.
Fiscal implications for state
To be determined.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.