TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) -- A bill that would return the Tappan Zee name to the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge was blocked by Assembly Democrats on Tuesday.
The bill was part of a years-long effort to strip the Cuomo name from the Hudson River span that replaced the old Tappan Zee Bridge in 2018.
But the bipartisan legislation didn't make it out of the Transportation Committee, where Democrats voted to block it, just as they did last year, the New York Post reported.
While many locals still refer to the bridge as the "Tappan Zee" or "Tap," it goes by the Cuomo name on official signposts.
Indeed, the cost of new signage is likely one of the reasons the bill was shot down by committee members.
The chair of the committee, Democratic Assemblyman William Magnarelli, said replacing signage would likely come with a price tag in the millions of dollars.
“I believe the majority of the committee felt they were OK with keeping the naming of the bridge for the late Gov. Mario Cuomo and not incurring any more expense for the taxpayers of New York,” Magnarelli told the Post.
State Sen. James Skoufis, a Democrat who joined Republicans in sponsoring the bill, said he "will prioritize this bill and many others" once lawmakers finalize the state budget.
GOP Assemblyman John McGowan who sponsored the bill in his chamber also said he'll "continue to pursue this legislation and will not back down to restore the rightful name of the Tappan Zee Bridge."
Tappan Zee is a centuries-old name for the Hudson crossing between Tarrytown and Nyack. It's a nod to Native Americans and Dutch settlers; Tappan was a Lenape tribe and Zee was the Dutch word for “sea.”
More than 200 years ago, 19th century writer Washington Irving referred to the Tappan Zee crossing in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”
Critics believe former Gov. Andrew Cuomo ignored history when he struck a backroom deal to rename the 2018 bridge after his late father, abruptly dropping the Tappan Zee name without input from residents.
Republican efforts to restore the name have failed for several years, even after Cuomo resigned as governor in 2021.
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