No New Yorker has been able to miss the recent back-and-forth over MTA funding. Once again, we are trapped in an unwinnable argument. Whose responsibility is the MTA capital plan? Should New York City contribute more funding? Or is it the state’s responsibility, since the MTA is a subsidiary of state government?
The conversation has devolved into threats against the New York City transit system and, as of yet, yielded no real solutions. In fact, this debate is exactly the problem. It completely misses the point.
We’re funding the MTA Capital Program all wrong.
Nationally, New York City’s transit system is unique. It is what allows us to be a city that functions with aberrantly low levels of car ownership. We are ‘the city that never sleeps’ because of our round-the-clock transit system. Without it, the gears of our city simply won’t turn. And without the economic activity that is driven by transit in New York City, the rest of the state suffers as well. The entire state is dependent on a strong city transit system.
Framing the capital funding process as a question of city dollars versus state dollars is just obfuscation. The critical truth about all of these dollars is that they’re not guaranteed. The MTA Capital Program, which pays for upkeep and expansion of our transit system cannot count on a single dollar of funding from dedicated budgetary revenue streams. For the full article click here
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