NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — Gov. Kathy Hochul appeared as a guest on ABC’s “The View” on Wednesday morning, and co-host Whoopi Goldberg took the opportunity to express her disapproval over the city’s impending $15 congestion pricing toll.
Goldberg, 68, who described herself as a “lifelong New Yorker,” joined in the mass criticism of the city’s controversial congestion pricing plan. The plan, which would charge most drivers a $15 toll for entering Manhattan below 60th Street (in most places), is intended to manage gridlock, raise revenue and produce cleaner air for the city.
“This is a huge deal because I can afford it. Don't get me wrong. I can afford it. But a lot of my friends who drive in every day, who left here because they couldn't afford to live here anymore, can't,” Goldberg said.
The Chelsea-born talk show host criticized the implementation of congestion pricing without a proper conversation with New Yorkers, stating that “New Yorkers did not mess up the streets.”
Goldberg noted that there used to be four lane avenues and ways to get around in Manhattan, but that city dwellers were not consulted on the implementation of infrastructural changes like bike lanes or parking lanes.
“The idea of having to pay to go from point A to point B without really having the conversation, only to see those things go up anyway, it made me feel like nobody was listening,” she told the governor.
The criticism came just over a week after the MTA held the final of four congestion pricing hearings to garner comments from the public. Transit officials held the “ratemaking hearings” in February and March to discuss the proposed tolling structure of congestion pricing, not to debate its merits.
Goldberg lives in a mansion valued at almost $3 million in West Orange, New Jersey that she purchased over a decade ago. If she were to commute to her ABC studio on 66th Street in the Upper West Side via the Lincoln Tunnel, she would be subject to the congestion pricing toll.
However, the actor-comedian did express that she understands the city's gridlock difficulties.
“You can't get around now. You can't get to Broadway in time unless you leave the day before. So, I know we don't have any more time,” Goldberg said.
In response to Goldberg’s criticisms, Hochul said that “the city is paralyzed.” Her response focused on the benefits of congestion pricing, like its emphasis on public safety, that it would clear the streets for emergency responders and that officials could utilize toll funds to reinvest in public transit, including bus terminals through which out-of-state commuters tend to enter the city.
“I’m trying to focus on safety, security, making our streets flow, making our city functional, making sure people are safe. And I understand the complaints about it, but people making less than $60,000 do not have to pay. We’re very sensitive to low-income people,” Hochul said.
The governor has consistently been a supporter of congestion pricing, and explained her support when the plan was passed by the MTA board in December.
“Congestion pricing means cleaner air, better transit and less gridlock on New York City's streets and today's vote by the MTA Board is a critical step forward,” Hochul said at the time.