this post was submitted on 10 Jan 2025
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Fuck Cars

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[–] Dogiedog64@lemmy.world 189 points 2 months ago (2 children)

Outstanding move on NYC's part.

[–] lazynooblet@lazysoci.al 53 points 2 months ago (4 children)

Prior to this going live there was a lot of talk about how congestion will simply move from one place to another. I don't know new york so can't name places but it was regarding commuters using a street or bridge that is now under congestion charge so they will flow an alternative route through roads that aren't designed for the additional traffic.

Is that now the case?

[–] disguy_ovahea@lemmy.world 58 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (12 children)

Some people may be inclined to go up and over Central Park to get to the other side without paying the $9. That likely only affects uptown residents. I can’t imagine anyone driving around the park from midtown to avoid the fee.

The only legitimate concerns I’ve read are from contractors with tools and small businesses who deliver. They should be offered exceptions if walking or mass transit are unrealistic options. You’re not riding the subway with acetylene tanks or delivering fresh meat on Metro North. Other than that, I love it.

[–] Hawke@lemmy.world 26 points 2 months ago (2 children)

They should be offered exceptions if walking or mass transit are unrealistic options.

No they shouldn’t. That’s how you let rich people skirt the law.

Tradespeople should just treat it like any other business expense. Eat it or raise your rates a little bit.

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[–] Gullible@sh.itjust.works 21 points 2 months ago (9 children)

Of all the things on Reddit, I miss remindmebot the most. They tried to kill it numerous times but it survived like a roach in radiation. On lemmy, I find an interesting question and have to set a timer for myself. This is the most first-world of problems, but I’m still moderately upset every time

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[–] thr0w4w4y2@sh.itjust.works 176 points 2 months ago (4 children)

inb4 the supreme court rules that congestion charging is unconstitutional and furthermore that public transport, too, is unconstitutional.

[–] piecat@lemmy.world 66 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Congestion pricing bad, private tolls good

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[–] IphtashuFitz@lemmy.world 59 points 2 months ago (2 children)

If the founding fathers didn’t explicitly mention it in the Constitution then clearly it’s unconstitutional.

[–] GraniteM@lemmy.world 15 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Pooping is unconstitutional.

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[–] Hackworth@lemmy.world 23 points 2 months ago

Exhaust Now Vents Directly Into Cab: EPA says, "For your health!"

[–] MadBob@feddit.nl 17 points 2 months ago (3 children)

"Ladies and gentleman of the committee, I put it to you: thousands, perhaps millions, of American songwriters have written about missing their truck. How many have written about missing the bus? I rest my case."

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[–] irotsoma@lemmy.world 153 points 2 months ago (6 children)

As long as that money is spent on public transit improvements, I think it's a great idea for many large cities.

[–] phoenixz@lemmy.ca 67 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (2 children)

is spent on pubic transit

Hahahahahaha

Oh sorry, I thought you were joking. Of course they won't

[–] bloup@lemmy.sdf.org 70 points 2 months ago (2 children)

is there any particular reason you’re saying that besides cynicism? I am having trouble finding specifics, but there’s a lot of reporting that the MTA is expecting to raise $15 billion from congestion tolling to fund public transportation repairs and improvements and pretty much all of the proposals for this in the past required all of the revenues to be earmarked for use by the MTA

[–] MonkRome@lemmy.world 47 points 2 months ago (5 children)

People are so used to how bad things are they don't trust improvement, even when it's real.

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[–] HeyJoe@lemmy.world 23 points 2 months ago

Mostly because tolls have always been a promise to improve infrastructure and then sometimes end up going to other things nobody wanted. A big one I hear about is my understanding that the NJ parkway toll promised that once the toll money made enough to pay for the highway it would be removed. Well, we all know how well that went... it's just hard to hear anything they say and not go I'll believe it when I see it.

[–] terabytes@lemm.ee 16 points 2 months ago (1 children)

I certainly hope it won't be spent on pubic transit, at least.

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[–] Alenalda@lemmy.world 21 points 2 months ago

Sorry best we can do is 80% to the police department.

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[–] cyborganism@lemmy.ca 42 points 2 months ago (5 children)

I REALLY wish they'd implement that in my home city of Montréal, Québec. We're facing huge traffic congestion because of construction. It's so bad it's actually costing lives due to driver impatience.

[–] sigmaklimgrindset@sopuli.xyz 21 points 2 months ago (5 children)

Downtown Toronto too, please. This last year was the first time I have seen multiple emergency vehicles not being able to get to their destinations because of traffic gridlock. It's insane.

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[–] vividspecter@lemm.ee 40 points 2 months ago (5 children)

See the Congestion Pricing Tracker for day by day measurements of the impact on congestion.

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[–] nifty@lemmy.world 38 points 2 months ago (10 children)

This is great, should be implemented in all cities. Most people who can use public transport should.

[–] doingthestuff@lemy.lol 23 points 2 months ago (9 children)

Not all cities are equal. Many have large areas with no public transportation available.

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[–] trufiassociation@lemmy.ml 33 points 2 months ago

We've been seeing a lot of anecdotal posting on Xitter of people who were skeptics or in opposition to this suddenly realizing that they just gained an hour or more per day because the traffic has been significantly reduced. So even some regular people (i.e. not the wealthy) who have to drive in NYC because of their job are realizing that there's a cost benefit even if they do pay for the congestion pricing.

[–] Blue_Morpho@lemmy.world 30 points 2 months ago (8 children)

Nice. Now cars are only for the rich like they should be.

Real solution: Ban cars in parts of NYC.

[–] MentalEdge@sopuli.xyz 111 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (3 children)

Right because everyone needing a car means everyone who can't afford one just automatically gets one.

Step one of reducing car-dependency is to reduce their number on the road. Then you can start bulding shit that accommodates the poor through actually nice-to-use public transit, bicycle paths, and walking routes.

Charge the rich. Build for the poor. Better yet, charge the rich, build for everyone. Not just cars. Because not everyone has cars.

Like FFS "good job now the poor can't drive" is hardly a comeback when it's like the most expensive mode of transit, massively subsidized with taxpayer money, just to kind of make it work. It wasn't something that could be made affordable or even efficient enough for everyone to use on a daily basis to begin with.

[–] anarchrist@lemmy.dbzer0.com 59 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Zippity zoppity let's redistribute some property

[–] ShinkanTrain@lemmy.ml 15 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Cut to me dramatically removing my "fuck cars" jacket like a Yakuza character to reveal a "fuck private property" t-shirt

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[–] scytale@lemm.ee 51 points 2 months ago (2 children)

What was that saying again, something along the lines of: A great city is not where the poor own and drive cars, but the rich take public transportation.

[–] regul@lemm.ee 21 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

A developed country is not a place where the poor have cars. It's where the rich use public transportation.

- Gustavo Petro, current president of Colombia, former mayor of Bogota

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[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 16 points 2 months ago (6 children)

Now cars are only for the rich

More that roads are for high occupancy or professional vehicles - buses, ambulances, construction vehicles, commercial trucks - that still need access to Manhattan but can't be placed on a train.

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[–] werefreeatlast@lemmy.world 29 points 2 months ago

Less cars is the answer! And in what transit is concerned I would say that convenience is very important. Like in Netherlands they got bike locking stations. Not simply a tube that you lock your bike into which is screwed to the front door of a building and fits 3 bikes. I'm talking massive building with an automated system that keeps your bike secure for when you get out of work after the train ride. And restrooms... With cleaning.

[–] kerrigan778@lemmy.world 27 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (4 children)

Are we sure that it's causing people to take alternative transit more vs just... Not going to Manhattan though? I'm all for it, just worth studying more.

[–] yardy_sardley@lemmy.ca 40 points 2 months ago (2 children)

Either way, the policy is working as intended; there are fewer superfluous car trips being made to lower manhattan. If people are deciding not to go over a $9 fee, I don't think they really needed to go that badly.

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[–] danc4498@lemmy.world 26 points 2 months ago (3 children)

Can anybody tell me how much a drive through the congestion priced road would cost? Like a straight line?

[–] nandeEbisu@lemmy.world 41 points 2 months ago (1 children)

It's not so much a congestion prices road, it's a zone. So anytime you enter that zone you pay $9 unless you make less than like $60 k then it's like $4-5, and emergency vehicles are free.

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[–] Periodicchair@lemmy.world 25 points 2 months ago (8 children)

$9 for cars, no matter if you go one block in or all the way through. And no daily charge for staying there multiple days, only charged when you enter.

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[–] BakedCatboy@lemmy.ml 24 points 2 months ago (10 children)

Does anyone have a good before screenshot of the same map view / area? I want to stitch together a before shot before I share so that people not from the area can get an idea of the change and not just immediately think "oh well my small town has traffic and it looks like that so what's the big deal"

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[–] ddash@lemmy.dbzer0.com 22 points 2 months ago

...if it isn't the bridge I said I'd cross... Wait, not going to pay that congestion charge.

[–] dx1@lemmy.world 17 points 2 months ago

Fixing traffic by... discouraging people from driving, lol. Well I'm not complaining.

[–] RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world 15 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Now do the Van Wyck. Disincentivizing cabs, livery, rideshare, car service, whatever else constantly clogs that that few miles of road that takes 25-30 minutes could be done in five.

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