MTA chief Janno Lieber said Friday that like it or not, congestion pricing is happening — as about 100 New York City firefighters and scores of other foes showed up at a public hearing in Manhattan to protest it.
While the hearing was the transit agency’s second in two days to supposedly listen to the public over the proposed back-breaking new $15 Midtown toll, Lieber told reporters during a break that any attempts to halt the plan are DOA at this point.
“This is frequently represented like I went on a drinking binge and came up with this idea in funding the MTA,’’ the agency’s chairman and CEO griped of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s hotly controversial plan targeting drivers traveling south of 60th Street in Manhattan.
“It’s time for all of you in the press to make it clear: This is state law, and we’re just trying to implement it in an effective way,’’ he said.
“This is not about whether we’re doing congestion pricing or not. It’s about [whether] the proposed toll structure makes sense and how much to adjust it.”
Lieber noted that supporters of the plan were turning out for the public-comment sessions, too — and that the discussion will help tweak its fine print.
But the fact that congestion pricing is happening no matter what was news to some members from both sides of the issue.
“They need to make it clear what is going on here — I sure didn’t know it was a done deal,’’ said a taxi driver who only gave his first name, Carlos, and attended the hearing.
“I’m here to say I don’t want this at all … simply because it’s wrong and inconvenient to the working class,’’ he said.
Leslie Stevens, who was at the hearing to advocate for congestion pricing with the nonprofit 350 NYC, said, “It’s good to know it’s happening.
“Most of us don’t know that,” she said.
Roselyn Gomez, a teacher at a private elementary school, added, “Let me tell you something about Lieber — [he] only holds these hearings because he has to.
“I’m glad he’s finally admitting that the decision has been made,” she added, “but then it should be made clear to the speakers what the hearing is about. Why waste our time and yours?”
Opponents argue that the crippling new toll will nail an already struggling working class, particularly those in the outer boroughs and greater metro area where mass transit is lacking, forcing them to drive into the city for everything from work to life-saving cancer treatments.
They note that the MTA loses millions of dollars a year to such issues as fare evaders and waste, money that could be available for improvements if the agency just did a better job.
But advocates claim the new toll, which could be rolled out as soon as mid-June, will provide easy money for much-needed improvements while also cutting down on traffic, thus easing pollution and even emergency-response times and traffic accidents.
John Gerald, who does construction and uses his personal vehicle to drive to work from Astoria, Queens, to carry his tools, told The Post outside the MTA building Friday, “I hate that the working class doesn’t have a say.
“Who does this benefit? … The only people that suffer from this is the people that already can’t afford their bills. And that’s me,” he said.
“I don’t know how much longer I can live in New York.’’
A babysitter who only gave her first name, Risa, said, “I used to take the train to work all the time, but with the random attacks that are happening in the subway, my husband was not comfortable with me taking the train.
“I might be forced to take the trains again. And I know that’s what the city wants, for people to take the trains. But at what cost? Our safety?” said the Forest Hill, Queens resident.
Dozens of members of the city’s Uniformed Firefighter Association gathered outside the building to protest the toll, too, saying it would create extreme physical hardships for them — and a potentially deadly scenario for Big Apple subway riders.
“So what we’re here to explain is that New York City firefighters, on a regular basis, will start out in one firehouse for the day and be told to go to another firehouse — they’ve got to pack up their gear bag and go from inside the zone or back and forth,’’ said union President Andrew Ansbro.
“It’s a long standing practice that the FDNY allows us to use our cars to do this. So by taking away the ability of us to use our cars or forcing us to pay a fee, you’re gonna have the members of this department take that bag with approximately 60 to 70 pounds of gear, personal toiletries, in case they have to decon after fire — take that pipe from the firehouse down to the local train or bus stop,’’ he said.
“Does anyone here thinks it makes sense to put a firefighter through a 45 minutes to an hour and a half CrossFit session before you expect them to come and save your life?’’
The union official added, “That bag is contaminated with a whole host of byproducts of fire — arsenic, formaldehyde, PCBs, all sorts of sorts.
“So do you think it makes any sense for New York City firefighters to be forced to take the bus or the subway?”
