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 Jan. 12, 2005 | Vol 5 No. 01 |
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In this issue of Spotlight on The Region: – Why Fewer Trains Didn’t Mean More Cars – Codey Bows Out With Characteristic Integrity – Calendar
But other, more pleasant memories of the transit strike may have a greater long-term significance: friendlier and calmer streets in the core of Manhattan, with fewer cars, and more walkers and bicyclists. How could this be? How could a transit strike, which closed the subways and buses and thus put pressure on people to drive into Manhattan, actually make the streets more pleasant for pedestrians, bicyclists and even drivers? The reason, of course, is that the City actively managed the traffic entering Manhattan and using the streets there, and did it well. The City government required vehicles entering Manhattan below 96th Street to have at least four occupants; it put into place temporary bike lanes; it reserved some streets for emergency vehicles; it restricted trucks and other commercial vehicles from entering Manhattan during the morning rush hour; and it facilitated walking and biking. Let’s say the magic words again: the City actively managed traffic. That is, it had a traffic management system. Might that be something to consider when transit workers are not on strike? It is indeed. We shouldn’t copy the rules put into place during the transit strike; those were unique to those special circumstances. But we should manage traffic under normal circumstances to make life better for everyone. Right now, most of us essentially assume traffic is like the weather: something to be cursed and discussed but not controlled. But a gutsy traffic management system can make traffic jams disappear, and along with them air pollution, noise pollution and accidents. Although the finer points can vary, the central means of a traffic management system involve controlling the flow of vehicles into central and lower Manhattan, and then regulating more closely where and how vehicles are used on Manhattan’s streets. The first step, regulating the inflow of traffic, could be accomplished with some form of fee to enter the core area of Manhattan. This fee could be devised to discourage trucks from using Manhattan as a main thoroughfare and to encourage more people to use transit. There are a number of ways to do this, such as using cameras to read license plates, next-generation transponders, or other high tech methods to collect the fee and enforce the charge. Special attention would have to be paid to preserving drivers’ privacy and making the system accessible to everyone. A second step, managing the use of Manhattan’s streets more closely, is already done in a small way with the city’s Thru Streets program. Additional steps would include dedicated bus lanes, more room for cyclists, and wider sidewalks for walkers. Some streets, such as the narrow ones of Lower Manhattan, might have most private vehicles kept off of them. Such a step could be a pivotal part of making Lower Manhattan a better place to live and work, and thus revitalizing this area that is so central in the city’s long term plans. If done in a spirit of reform, a traffic management system could be a key part of transforming the overall flavor and livability of the city. As Transportation Alternatives pointed out in its recent newsletter, London actually set specific numerical goals for not only reducing traffic, but also reducing pedestrian deaths and increasing cycling rates (see http://www.transalt.org for more information). In a city that is suffering a diabetes epidemic due in part to lack of exercise (see the New York Times’ series for more information), making it easier to walk and bicycle should be a top public health priority. London’s traffic management plan, put into place by its activist mayor Ken Livingstone, has been wildly successful: bus speeds and bus ridership are dramatically higher, thanks to the fee discouraging private cars from driving on the streets on weekdays. Its success has helped spur other cities to take the plunge. Stockholm initiated its new congestion pricing system this month, which includes giving voters a chance to say yea or nea to the system toward the end of the year. The system’s advocates have confidence the voters will approve it, once having experienced its benefits. Here in New York, traffic management remains a political hot potato, but with accumulating successes in other cities, interest is growing, as evidenced by the announcement by the Partnership for New York City that it is conducting a study on the subject, adding to the work already completed by RPA and others. With constantly improving technology and events like the strike to dramatize its potential, a shift in public and political sentiment could be brewing. A great irony and potential benefit of the transit strike is that it is helping build momentum for a better way to manage one of our most vital public resources, our streets. - RPA Staff So said New Jersey Governor Richard Codey in his second and final State of the State Address this week, where he bid goodbye to an unexpected but now heralded term as governor of the Garden State. “When I took this office, New Jersey was in a state of shock, and quite frankly, so was I,” acknowledged Codey, who assumed the position a little over a year ago when then Governor James McGreevey resigned after coming out as a gay man and admitting to hiring a former lover to a top security position in his administration. At that time, New Jersey’s Constitution called for the Senate President to become Acting Governor until the next election. That’s not the case anymore. Because of the furor generated by McGreevey’s resignation, voters approved a law that creates a new position of lieutenant governor, to be filled in a 2009 election, who would step into the governor’s office should it be necessary. In his Address, Codey listed a number of accomplishments, including negotiating a new football stadium for the Giants and Jets, banning smoking in restaurants and bars, and increasing the minimum wage. He raised the level of visibility of mental health issues, sharing his wife’s illness with the rest of the world as a way to call attention to this critically important issue. But although he deserves credit for these achievements, he will be best remembered for restoring confidence, dignity and a spirit of civility in State government. As a result, he will be leaving the governor’s office next Tuesday with one of the highest approval ratings of any governor. New Jerseyans appeared to like Codey’s matter-of-fact style and the straight talk he provided on important challenges confronting the state, even though such conduct was the opposite of what professional political consultants often advise. The Star-Ledger called him “the spin-free governor.” His honest style could be seen when he submitted this year’s budget. Rejecting the advice of some to “sweeten the pot” by enhancing tax rebates, Governor Codey proposed a cut in rebates to homeowners and senior citizens, two constituencies that most politicians pander to because of their voting clout. Codey also continued to push for solutions to the structural deficit in the State budget. And he recognized the medical miracles and economic power of stem cell research, trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to gain the votes in both houses of the Legislature to provide long-term funding for research to save lives and ease suffering. Governor-elect Jon Corzine takes office next week, but that doesn’t entirely remove Gov. Codey from the picture. Codey will remain Senate President, one seat away from the governor’s office until a Lieutenant Governor takes office in 2010, should Jon Corzine be unable to fulfill his duties. That’s fine with Codey. “I have no intention of going gently into that good night,” Codey said in his farewell speech. “There are still windmills to tilt at and dragons to slay. And I intend to call them as I see ‘em until my contract runs out.” Among the windmills RPA would like to see him tilt at are sustainable long-term funding for the Transportation Trust Fund, real property tax reform that ends the fiscal arguments for the ratables chase, and permanent protection of the Highlands, Sourlands and other key areas of the state. Potential dragons abound, including those fellow legislators, political bosses, lobbyists and special interests who seek satisfaction today rather than pursue the hard decisions necessary to benefit future generations. Back in the Senate, Gov. Codey will doubtless use his experiences to continue to give us straight talk and sensible, sustainable solutions. In his speech he admonished his fellow legislators, “Let us not forget that people who lead busy and demanding lives rely on us to act on their behalf. They don’t expect miracles – but they don’t deserve B.S. So let us not be afraid to be up front with the people we represent. They can handle the truth, but more importantly, they deserve it.” “Above all else, I have tried to show that government can always act with integrity and decency.” What a lesson for us all.
Questions Or Comments On What’s In This Issue? Send Them To The Editor Of Spotlight On The Region, Alex Marshall At alex@rpa.org
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January 31
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Spotlight on The Region A publication of Regional Plan Association, Robert Yaro, President, Alex Marshall, Senior Editor 212-253-2727, x360 alex@rpa.org www.rpa.org |
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