Joint Letter to MTA Board Chair Lieber on TMRB Appointments

January 25, 2022

Janno Lieber Chair and CEO

Metropolitan Transit Authority 2 Broadway

New York, NY 10004

Dear Chair Lieber:

We write to urge the MTA Board to make its appointments to the Traffic Mobility Review Board (TMRB) with the utmost urgency and to ensure that at least one of the individuals appointed is a resident of Manhattan.

As supporters of congestion pricing and a fully-funded public transportation system, we ask the MTA Board to make appointments to the TMRB as soon as possible. With implementation of congestion pricing already delayed to 2023 due to federal regulations, we must do everything we can to ensure that the program can start as soon as possible. The sooner the appointments are made, the more time there will be for the TMRB to create a plan that most effectively raises revenue and decreases congestion in Manhattan’s Central Business District.

In addition, we continue to request that at least one member of the TMRB be a resident of Manhattan, the borough where congestion pricing will be implemented. We are fully supportive of this program, and excited for the benefits it will deliver to Manhattan and the region, but residents of Manhattan will face unique impacts from the program, and having a representative from Manhattan will help those impacts be taken into account. A Manhattanite joining the representatives from the Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road regions will ensure a community-based perspective that will improve the tolling program.

Congestion pricing has been successful in cities around the globe, and we are excited to see it implemented in New York City. In order to ensure that success, we believe it is essential for the TMRB to be appointed swiftly, and for that board to include Manhattan representation.

Sincerely,