State officials are clinging to their guarantee that tolls throughout the New York State Thruway Authority system will not have to increase to fund the Tappan Zee Bridge replacement.
Tom Madison, the authority”™s executive director, released a statement to News 12 Westchester saying, “We have consistently said there will be no systemwide toll increase to support the New NY Bridge project.”
That has been the official stance of the authority and of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, who pledged not to increase tolls to fund the $3.9 billion, twin-span bridge during a televised gubernatorial debate last month.
But the pledges seem to be contradicted by statements made in federal documents obtained by the daily newspaper The Journal News, in which the state said systemwide tolls would offset the funding of the bridge. Those documents were received after a protracted battle under Freedom of Information laws, and when the publication received the requested documents much information had been redacted. The state has contended that releasing the information, which is tentative, could damage the financial position of the authority.
Although the skeleton of the new bridge has been erected, the majority of funding remains up in the air. The current cash toll of $5 on the Tappan Zee will increase to fund part of the new bridge, but how high the new bridge”™s toll will be remains elusive. Some estimate it could double or triple.
Cuomo, during the Oct. 22 debate, said “You can”™t really figure out the toll until you know the final bill. ”¦ But it will be affordable for commuters and we understand that.” Cuomo won re-election earlier this month over Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, a Republican.
New York has received a $1.6 billion loan from the U.S. Department of Transportation, but the state lost out on most of a $511 million loan from a federal clean water fund after the Environmental Protection Agency said it would have been a misuse of those funds. Several environmental groups have since filed a lawsuit to ensure the rejection of those loans while the state appeals the EPA”™s ruling.
A financing and toll commission that would look to determine what the new toll will be has been established but has not yet been appointed by the governor. Astorino and others have suggested the state could enact a resident discount. Staten Island residents with E-ZPass receive a discounted rate for the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, which has a cash toll of $15 and an E-ZPass rate of $10.67.
