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Apr 25, 2008 7:03 pm US/Eastern
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More Pain: NYS Thruway Jacks Up Tolls
Drivers Meet Bad News With Resignation, Despair; More Increases Planned For January 2010
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
Drivers will be digging deeper to travel on the New York State Thruway. The authority that runs the superhighway north of New York City approved toll hikes on Friday.
CBS 2 HD has a breakdown of how much it will cost you.
For many drivers it's a downer met with an air of resignation.
"What are you gonna do?" one driver told CBS 2 HD. "You need to travel. You need to get from A to B and they've got you over a barrel."
"What can you do?" Dave Sommer added. "The highway needs to be maintained, right?"
Maintenance is a key point used by the Thruway Authority to justify the toll hikes.
The first to feel the pinch will be EZ Pass users. Come July the EZ Pass discount off the cash toll will be slashed from an average 18 percent to a mere 5 percent.
Then in January EZ Pass will rise again as cash toll hikes kick in.
Here's a breakdown of toll increases since 2005:
* From $.75 at the Yonkers and Harriman tolls to $1.25
* Up $.50 in New Rochelle as well to $1.75
* And from $4 to $5 at the Tappan Zee Bridge
Yonkers Assemblyman Michael Spano says the hikes are completely unjustified.
"There is no need to raise the tolls," Spano said. "The Thruway Authority needs to look at itself, streamline its government and its operations."
The Thruway Authority says it's been trying to keep costs down, in part by cutting 450 jobs since 1995, with another 50 jobs to be eliminated by 2012.
The only consolation for drivers – measured per mile – is Thruway tolls will still be cheaper than on the New Jersey Turnpike.
The Thruway Authority also voted to raise tolls again in January 2010 if its budget crunch continues.
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