ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION No. 67
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
INTRODUCED MARCH 18, 1996
By Assemblyman DORIA, Assemblywoman QUIGLEY, Assemblymen Garcia, Jones, Romano and Impreveduto
An Assembly Resolution memorializing the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to reject any proposal to increase fares for PATH.
Whereas, The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, a bi-state agency established by compact between the states of New York and New Jersey, each state acting as an equal agency partner, operates Port Authority Trans-Hudson passenger rail system, more commonly known as "PATH," which connects New Jersey to Manhattan; and
Whereas, According to a 1990 survey conducted by the authority, the 69,000 daily PATH riders accounted for 26 percent of all those commuters using an interstate crossing into Manhattan during the morning rush hour; and
Whereas, Residents of New Jersey use PATH more frequently than residents of New York, while residents of New York use the George Washington, Bayonne, Goethals, and Outerbridge crossings more frequently than residents of New Jersey; and
Whereas, Although the annual profits realized by the authority's six vehicular crossings between New Jersey and New York City help offset the annual operating loss of PATH, this passenger rail system is, nevertheless, a significant part of the authority's interstate transportation network because PATH accommodates some 207,000 weekday passengers who would otherwise place an even greater reliance on vehicle usage to gain access to Manhattan and thereby further exacerbate traffic and air pollution problems in that part of New York City; and
Whereas, A 1994 study by the Texas Transportation Institute stated that congestion in the North Jersey-New York City region cost $6.62 billion in 1991 in fuel burned and hourly wages lost in traffic jams, and of that $6.62 billion, the average North Jerseyan is delayed 110 hours a year in traffic, which costs that resident $1,090 a year in spent fuel and lost wages, and since, according to the authority, 70 percent of rush hour PATH riders own automobiles, the impact of a PATH fare increase could increase the use of the other New Jersey-New York crossings and thereby further exacerbate the commuting costs of all North Jerseyans; and
Whereas, The Mayor of New York City has stated that authority policies benefit the residents of New Jersey at the expense of residents of New York City; however, it is noted that: (1) a review of overall authority investment patterns suggests an equitable treatment of the two states by the authority; (2) reliance on PATH service avoids aggravating traffic and air pollution problems in Manhattan; and (3) residents of New Jersey do pay fares or tolls to gain access to Manhattan, a condition not experienced by vehicles entering Manhattan over the East River via the free Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg and Queensboro bridges, or the numerous Harlem River crossings; and
Whereas, Any review of the need for a PATH fare increase should insure that mass transit is continually promoted through reasonable fares, that the authority has taken all steps to reduce or privatize its operations where appropriate and consistent with its core functions, and that further suggestions by the Mayor of New York City regarding a PATH fare increase be accompanied by: (1) an accounting of how the City benefits from taxes, and other expenditures for goods and services paid by New Jersey residents; (2) steps taken by the City to reduce or privatize its various operations, as appropriate, to save City residents from greater tax burdens; and (3) justification for not seeking to place some level of tolls on all bridges now providing free access to Manhattan or restructuring the City's one-fare mass transit system into a zoned fare system; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is memorialized to: (1) reject the suggestion from the Mayor of New York City that the authority raise fares on the PATH system; (2) insure that mass transit is encouraged through the continuation of a reasonable authority fare structure; and (3) reduce or privatize authority operations, as appropriate and consistent with the authority's core functions. By focusing on the authority's core functions, the authority should realize sufficient savings to enable it to defer any need to consider a fare increase in the near future.
2. Duly authenticated copies of this resolution, signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and attested to by the Clerk thereof, shall be transmitted to the Governor of the State of New Jersey, the Governor of the State of New York, the Commissioners and the Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the Mayor of New York City.
STATEMENT
This resolution memorializes the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to reject any proposal to increase fares in the near future for its PATH system.
The resolution further recommends that the authority reduce or privatize its operations where appropriate and consistent with its core functions. By focusing on the authority's core functions and reorganizing the authority to insure that such core functions are emphasized, savings should be realized that would permit the authority to defer the need to consider fare increases in the near term.
Urges Port Authority to reject increases in fares for PATH.