NEW CITY – The Rockland County Legislature has gone on record urging the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge Toll Advisory Panel to recommend discounted tolls for Rockland bridge users.
The advisory panel is considering how much of a toll hike should be recommended to the Thruway Authority for the new bridge that replaced the old Tappan Zee.
“Rockland County has far fewer options when it comes to public transportation and getting into Westchester or New York City for a job or a cultural event,” said Legislator Harriet Cornell. “That fact must be acknowledged and one way is to provide steeply discounted toll rates to Rockland County bridge users.”
Cornell said, “The cost of building the new bridge and of operating the Thruway system cannot fall on the backs of Rockland County residents and businesses.”
Legislator Nancy Low-Hogan, who co-sponsored the measure with Cornell, said the current $5 bridge toll is estimated to at least double after 2020. “We can’t expect hard-working Rockland County families and businesses to pay twice the amount. It’s simply not economically feasible,” she said.
Local legislators voted to urge that a graduated toll discount program for residents and local commuters be put in place.
