The Department of Transportation is considering a proposal to let some Access-a-Ride (AAR) vehicles utilize the city’s bus lanes — an effort to speed up trips for users, who complain the service is painstakingly slow.
‘An all-out ban on access to public transportation would create enormous barriers to successful reentry and rehabilitation.’
In an effort to improve the AAR program, the MTA began offering e-hail services to users in 2016, allowing them to reserve trips in taxis or for-hire vehicles instead of the traditional blue and white AAR cars.
Some lawmakers and residents in areas outside the proposed congestion zone worry drivers will park and ride. But there are reasons to suspect that won’t occur.
‘A city that prioritizes the lives of a majority of its people over the demands and convenience of automobile drivers would not hesitate to saturate every city street, avenue and highway throughout the five boroughs with speed cameras that operate 24 hours a day. ‘
‘We have to make sure we make the investments throughout the MTA region if were going be successful,’ Sen. David Carlucci told the WBAI program. ‘We also have to address the issue of double tolling.’
‘I want to have substantive conversation about that with the governor and with the state legislature, and not have it just be dismissed out of hand.’
Corey Johnson also says he plans to introduce legislation that would require the Department of Transportation to issue a ‘a comprehensive master plan for city streets’ every five years, He also wants to ‘reimagine’ the BQE.
The vote avoided an alternative plan that would have hiked the base fare to $3, something disabled riders and advocates argued would unevenly burden Access-a-Ride users.
In a city with crowded streets, a rising population and soaring land prices, most New York City parking is free. Experts say that contributes to a shortage of spaces that generates traffic, obstructs deliveries, slows buses and drives motorists crazy.