Borough Park, NY – Simcha Felder, one of Michael Bloomberg’s closest allies in the City Council and a supporter of congestion pricing, said yesterday, “I clearly think I made a mistake on that vote.” Felder made the remark during an interview on The Perez Notes, an online radio show based out of La Guardia Community College.
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Here’s partial transcription:
SIMCHA FELDER: Let me just say, the plan that I was in favor of would not have charged people who got on the F.D.R. and did not get off on the zones. Which meant it would have discouraged people from coming into the zone when it was busy. At the end of the day the plan that we voted on was actually going to tax people whether they got off or on, no matter what, which think was a mistake on my part. So, if, Roberto, you’re asking me to tell your listeners what did they lose, I would say that my vote initially had good intentions but at the end of the day I think I made a mistake. I clearly think I made a mistake on that vote.
HOST ROBERTO PEREZ: What is the solution then, Councilman?
FELDER: I don’t know. But initially what I was saying is if you put into place improvements in mass transit and other improvements, and then you have trains running so frequently and buses running frequently enough to be able to tell Roberto, ‘Don’t take your car in ’cause you can get on a train and you may even have a seat,’ then that may be fair telling people don’t take your car in. But now, in essence, what we were doing is voting on a plan where we’re saying, ‘If you take your car in, it’s gonna cost you another eight bucks. But, we really don’t have any way that makes you comfortable in taking the train.’ And I think that wasn’t fair.
This morning a spokesman for Felder said the councilman was referring only to a specific part of the plan that charged drivers on Manhattan highways who did not actually enter the congestion zone. The spokesman added that if he had to do it over again, Felder would still vote for the plan.
this shows his true colors
ya, ya, after losing on this isuue, he regrates it, to late Simcha.
anyone who takes the battery tunnel wouldn’t have been effected anyway because the congestion pricing toll would’ve been deducted.
the bill woul’ve hurt most manhattan residents or ppl who would enter manhattan for free on brooklyn, manhattan, or williamsburgh bridge
i emailed felders office a alternative plan for congestion pricing.
Readers here is the letter i wrote:
Dear Council Member Felder,
For a better solution for our transit disaster, there are some alternative solutions other than congestion pricing or paying higher prices.
First, a bridge should be build between Red Hook and Jersey City that will connect between the BQE and NJ Turnpike. This bridge can be the first green bridge ever built. A bridge between Brooklyn and NJ is necessary since a great deal of traffic is from Companies/Residences located in NJ/Upstate NY commuting to New York City via the George Washington Bridge and Tunnels by using Manhattan to get to Brooklyn or Queens.
In addition, the C train should cross over the George Washington Bridge to Fort Lee . The George Washington Bridge has the infrastructure for an additional level, so let us use it for our trains and keep the vehicle traffic out from the city.
After all, NYC transit should institute a recycling program of separate paper and plastic/cans bins in all their stations. It is critical to consider that newspapers and bottles/cans are a major contributor to transit garbage, especially in the summer when the use of drinks is much greater.
These solutions are to highlight areas for improvement that will make us all happier and greener. Your efforts and hard work are greatly appreciated It will be great for us to see the best come out.
Sincerely
typical politician ….
Every person is allowed to make a mistake.
This shows what a true person Felder is, He made a mistake and admits it. Show one other elected official that admits when he makes a mistake.
Simcha you are a true Kiddush Hashem.
anyone who takes the battery tunnel wouldn’t have been effected anyway because the congestion pricing toll would’ve been deducted. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
And do you know that this would cause another 6 miles of back up since people would say k that if they have to pay an additional 8.00 they mind as well take the tunnel to offset the addtional 8.00!
Why are you so proud of Smicha ? If you read between the lines, his spokesman said he would stillvote YES if it came up for a vote. He just wanted a little change. Yeah sure just some more political double talk… Same old NYC dirty politics…
Isn’t he up for re election?
I wonder what Bloomy has to say about his comments.