HIGHLAND – The Chairman of the New York State Bridge Authority Board said they were blindsided by Governor Cuomo’s proposal to merge the authority that runs the five Mid-Hudson bridges across the Hudson River into the Thruway Authority
Bridge Authority Chairman Richard Gerentine said the board was not even given any reason for its necessity. “We’re very surprised by what happened. We felt left out that we weren’t told about it prior, or during the process. We’re still not told by Albany what the efficiencies are and we feel that we’re very capable of running our bridges in a very professional manner and great manner the way they’re running right now,” he said.
Gerentine joined area state lawmakers, union members and officials of chambers of commerce on Thursday in front of the Bridge Authority’s Highland headquarters to voice their united opposition to the merger.
Assemblyman Jonathan Jacobson (D, Newburgh) said he believes the merger is a ploy to increase bridge tolls outside of New York City and subsidize the Mario Cuomo Bridge between Rockland and Westchester counties. “This is a solution in search of a problem. There’s no reason to do it,” said Jacobson. “The bridge tolls here are the lowest in the state and perhaps, the lowest in the nation. All this means is there’s a chance to take the money from the Bridge Authority and ship it to the Thruway to try to keep the tolls lower on the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge,” he said.
It’s not clear how employees of the Bridge Authority would be affected, but members of their board said if there is a merger, travelers in the Hudson Valley without EZ Pass will definitely be affected because the Thruway could add administrative fees of $2 in addition to the toll. Even when all the state’s tolls become automated, the Bridge Authority board maintains they would keep the tolls at $1.50 as long as they remain separate from the Thruway.
Earlier this month, Thruway Executive Director Matthew Driscoll told Mid-Hudson News a merger would just improve joint operations including purchasing and payroll and he said the Bridge Authority would not be used to subsidize the much larger transportation agency.
Currently, Assembly Bill A190, which is a bill requiring both the Thruway and Bridge Authority to conduct feasibility studies on the potential merger, is in the Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee. If it is passed, it would require a study to be presented to the governor within one year.
Since the 2020-2021 state budget needs to be approved by March 31, Jacobson said they will focus on having it removed from the budget all together before then.
