Kensington Assemblyman Gives Plan To Fix MTA

KENSINGTON, BROOKLYN — State Assemblyman Robert Carroll, a former attorney from Kensington, never learned to drive growing up in the area and doesn't have a driver's license.

So, while he does use a car to get to some of his more time-sensitive obligations, Carroll likely rides the subways and busses more than most of his New York City colleagues do.

And this week, Carroll, whose district includes Park Slope, Windsor Terrace and parts of Ditmas Park and Flatbush (see a full district map here), announced six steps he thinks the state, which controls the MTA, can take to fix the city's beleaguered subway system.

"New Yorkers are uncomfortable on their commutes, crammed into trains and sitting for long periods in decrepit stations on hot platforms," Carroll said in a press release. "And we, as leaders, must make some uncomfortable choices about how to improve their lives."

The "Carroll Plan," as he calls it, involves six steps:

• Congestion pricing — Lowering tolls on outer borough bridges, while adding tolls to the East River bridges (with discounts for those who live "in transportation deserts").
• Float a bond — Secure a $4.5 billion general obligation bond from the state to add to the MTA budget.
• Increase the taxi surcharge — Raise it from 50 cents to a dollar, applying this to Uber, black cars and other ride sharing apps.
• Call an efficiency task force — This task force would study cities such as London and Paris to figure out why New York City's subway system is so much more expensive.
• Divert income taxes — Take a "small percentage" of income taxes in cities served by the MTA and divert it to the agency.
• End the BQX — Mayor Bill de Blasio's streetcar project is "a $2.5 billion dollar diversion from the real transit crisis in this city," Carroll says.

He says these steps would increase the money needed to give New York City a modern and reliable subway system.

"We have been forced to accept that a bad commute is simply part of living in New York City," Carroll said. "That does not have to be the case. But we need commitment, sacrifice, and a real plan. The MTA’s capital budget is underfunded. We have to find places to add money for newer trains, modern stations, and efficient equipment. The money is there. And I know where to look."

What do you think? Would you be in favor of any of the changes proposed above?

Image courtesy Bobby Carroll