Free Transit Is a Policy Shift, Not Budget Issue
Going from a half-fare to a free fare with no work requirements, no restrictions on how long a person can remain in the transit system, etc., is a major policy change that would require MTA support -- it's a qualitative, not quantitative, change in how we manage and control access to the transit system. Maybe let's get the budget done first and then spend some time after that budget is done tackling major policy changes over areas of government that the city doesn't control.
Columbia Law Students Champion Free Bus Initiative
Great op ed on free buses by Columbia j-school students. Good to see a nonconventional, well-reported opinion here. https://t.co/rvO3uuc1Pg https://t.co/jALkCkrKcp
Allow JetBlue‑Spirit Merger to Boost Competition
The government should have allowed the JetBlue / Spirit merger to go through. Together they are some competition for the bigger airlines, but apart they are both in a lot of trouble.
Fatal Crash Drivers Keep Racking up Tickets Afterward
My paper showed how persistently bad these drivers are: 39 vehicles involved in just one year's fatal crashes went on to accumulate another 123 red- and speed-camera tickets AFTER their fatal crash. https://t.co/lndQHwYbi4 https://t.co/7cN7CnIQHA
Mayor Mamdani May Use DSA Rhetoric Over Bond Downgrade
We are still in city/state budget season and anything can happen. One potential "anything" is ... does Mamdani, like most mayors, run away from the prospect of any bond downgrade? Or does he employ this as part of a long-held...
Housing Rates Rise Modestly; Fear Skews Market Perception
I enjoyed our exchange with Claire Valdez, and I found this part illuminating. This isn't really a "good" "deal." It's just ... the going rate, including a 4.4 percent annual increase, not crazy in line with projected inflation. Our housing...
Broker Reports Skewed by Newer, Upscale Apartments
Yes. The much-hyped broker reports are skewed by the fact that these are newer, higher-quality apartments in certain neighborhoods.
Governor Must Permit Strike to Pressure LIRR Contracts
The governor should allow a strike. There is no other way to get concessions from the LIRR's crazy contracts.
Congestion Pricing Lacks Strong Support but Remains Worthwhile
Congestion pricing actually still doesn't poll very strongly. Never has. It's still a good idea, though.
No Public Data Proves Waymo Is Safer than Human Drivers
a "detailed and confidential overview" is not public information. Again, despite the tech uber alles crowd cheering them on, there is no objective, publicly available raw data indicating that Waymo is safer, or less safe, than a dense city's safest...
Waymo's Safety Hinges on Local Street Regulations
Waymo cannot make streets safer (or not). City and state policies make streets safer (or not). Waymo will act within whatever street-safety regime cities and states decide to adopt, for better or for worse. If SF penalized the company for...
NYC Housing Crisis Narrative Turns Any Dip Into New Panic
You can bet, though, that after 40 years of the “crisis” of rising house prices and rents in NYC, the minute they even hint at falling, that will also be a “crisis.”
NYC's SuperSpeeders Bill Tests Smart Auto Safety vs Car Overuse
The SuperSpeeders bill is also a useful test of whether NYC is going to use autonomous and semi-autonomous technology intelligently, to cut known and imminent danger to the public by reducing the control that the worst drivers have over their...
Governor's Yes Risks Investor Credibility Amid Rising Taxes
If the governor says "yes" to this, she should have no credibility with investors in the city's debt. New York's tax revenues are rising. If gimmicks like this are necessary now, what happens when tax revenues stop rising? https://t.co/KGqlxU5QuC https://t.co/0Eah2RLkKQ
Self‑Driving Cars Will Replace Top Drivers First
Yes. Especially since, the way we're going, the country's worst, most potentially deadly drivers will be the last to be replaced by Waymos (if ever). The first drivers to be replaced by Waymos would be the nation's best drivers.
Invite-Only Press Shows Lack of Journalistic Integrity
The "invited press" at these events who agree to participate, may as well just be paid by City Hall as Mamdani's vanity photographers. You are not a Serious Journalist if you are agreeing to participate in an invite-only press conference...
Illegal Parked Vehicles Keep Pedestrians at Deadly Risk
German tourist Alexandra Sabine Lewalter Maric was gruesomely crushed to death at this intersection last fall, in part because incessantly illegally parked vehicles block the sightlines for pedestrians. But nearly a year later, the ice cream truck and other vehicles...
Sysco Exploits Refrigeration Loophole, Idles Trucks for Hours
.@Sysco in particular also often loudly idles out here for hours, because the company knows it can use the refrigeration loophole to avoid idling tickets.
E‑bikes Aren’t Offsetting Car Trips, Just Spawning Deliveries
There is no evidence whatsoever that commercial e-bikes have replaced a single car/truck trip in nyc. They created an entire new industry of mass scale slop delivery. All induced demand. NYCHA constantly finds the batteries in the trash chutes.
NYC Housing Lottery Flaws: No Work Requirement Criticized
Terrible policy for NYC to allow working-age people into lottery housing without a work requirement. Holding down a job indicates mental stability. These “preachers” on the subways are not “working.” https://t.co/hkbYX7TRrU https://t.co/nrKFiGp1nL
City Redesign for Commercial E‑bikes Lacks Environmental Justification
Why are we rearranging the city around commercial e-bikes, which have no proven environmental benefit and which are still basically an underpriced, underregulated nuisance use of the bike lanes? https://t.co/lfGnuKUAQy
NYC AV Permits Persist Despite Expired State Framework
“The city permit program still exists,” says NYCDOT’s Kelsey Taeckens on testing AVs. It’s basically as of right if you meet the requirements. But the state law framework under which the city issues the permits expired with the (now late)...
Autonomous Vehicles Still Depend on Human Remote Control
A couple panelists have said that “autonomous” is yet another purposeful misnomer, like “hosting” or “sharing.” The vehicles require full-time remote human assistance. There are issues of capability, quality control, fatigue here, says prof Wansley. https://t.co/DuPH2RRhk7
Tech Firms Begging NYC for Data, Says Ex-FDNY Chief
“We have to beg for data” from tech firms operating on NYC streets, says former FDNY commish Kavanaugh. https://t.co/oIkFcbeM01
Regulate AVs to Curb Externalities, Protect Privacy
AV regulation must focus on “curbing externalities” (congestion taxes), consumer protection, and the impact on the urban environment, says Prof Wansley. (He’s worried about privacy as an externality, eg companies’ full surveillance of everything that happens on the streets and...
Manhattan Gig Workers Earn Double Thanks to Unmatched Demand
To Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and similar, “Manhattan streets are paved with gold,” says former deputy mayor for ops Meera Joshi. Constant “demand and very little price sensitivity,” meaning “double” the $$ you’ll make anywhere else. [this little borough is not...
Waymo Matches Human Drivers' Safety, Despite Underreported Crashes
Waymo in SF has comparable safety rate to UberLyft human-driven rides in SF, says Cardozo prof Matthew Wansley, citing academic study, but notes the human-driven crashes in this set are likely underreported. He thinks AVs are making a “positive contribution”...
NYC's Street Network Among World's Most Complex
“We have the most complex street system in the country, among the most complex in the world,” says Kelsey Taeckens, NYC DOT mobility policy analyst. https://t.co/yGY51JORYu
Tech Imposes Solutions; Cities Intervene when Systems Fail
Tech often comes to cities and says “this is how it works, trust us,” says former FDNY commish Laura Kavanaugh. She notes that the city’s role is often triggered when something has failed to work the way it should. https://t.co/kcpZR2Q3BM
Regulators, Not Tesla, Allow Misleading Autopilot Labels
David Zipper note that Tesla has gotten away with calling something “autopilot” and “self driving” even though it’s not “autopilot” or “self driving.” Notes that the failure is regulators, not companies.
Tech Firms Blur Tool vs Solution; AVs Aren’t Salvation
“Tech companies deliberately obfuscate the distinction” between a tool and a solution, says Peter Norton. This applies to AVs, he notes. [they may be a tool for something, but we need to define what that thing is in NYC.] High-tech...
Waymo's 92% Safer Claim Is Just Marketing
The “92% safer” line from Waymo “is a marketing line,” says Bloomberg’s David Zipper. Any serious academic will tell you, on safety, “we don’t know.”
Europe Boosts Transit Investment; U.S. Falls Behind
“European cities have been doubling and tripling down on transit and we’re not,” says Rachel Weinberger.
Mass Adoption Dulls the Joy of Driving
Everyone keeps saying “oh, the Waymo, it’s so fun, get in!” says Rachel Weinberger. Notes this reasoning ignores the entire history of the 20th century where “the number of people who wanted to use the motor vehicle entirely ruined the...
AV Safety Data Ignores Induced Driving, Says Zipper
David Zipper says that the context-free AV boosters on social media are generally engineers. This is all a 20th century throwback to having a singular goal of moving motor vehicles fast. He notes that the AV safety data is meaningless...
Oslo, Helsinki Achieve Zero Traffic Deaths Without AVs
“Oslo and Helsinki had zero traffic deaths last year,” notes David Zipper. [without AVs]. This is not a question of “futuristic technology.” https://t.co/mJXh3YHSoo
Safety Debate Distracts From Proven Transit Solutions
“The safety question is actually a distraction” on AVs, says RPA’s Rachel weinberger. “We have the technology to make motor vehicles much safer. … we have speed governors … the safest way is to get more people on transit....
Waymo Manager Walks Out, Stifles Critical Debate
Panelists and guests at this Roosevelt House AV summit uniformly disappointed that Waymo northeast policy manager gave his pitch and then left rather than listening to the two more skeptical panels to follow and having a real discussion. https://t.co/pwVnR2g2OA
Target Staged Crashes and Superspeeders to Remove Worst Drivers
We need some law changes to reduce the incentive for staged crashes -- see the article about New Orleans's crazy staged-crash regime, including a murder, in the new New Yorker -- but absolutely, the superspeeders bill and other ways of...
Regulate Driverless Rideshares to Preserve NYC Transit Efficiency
Thankfully, NYC doesn't have to manage itself via superficial lukewarm takes. We know from the UberLyft rollout and ensuing price war a decade ago that we will have to carefully regulate and price for-hire driverless vehicles (the term "ridershare" in...
City Voucher Rules Bar Low‑wage Renters, Landlords Profit
CityFHEPS means the city is competing with this guy ... landlords would rather take the voucher.
Vacancy Tax only Viable Within Comprehensive Reform
This is sort of like "oops, I forgot to get you a present for your birthday so here's what I randomly found in the junk drawer." A higher tax on unoccupied homes could make sense in the context of full...
Half‑price Eggs Create Massive Arbitrage—Ration or Profit
If you are selling eggs for half the price of the going rate, unless you ration the eggs, this is a massive arbitrage opportunity.
SNAP Shouldn't Fund Stores Undercutting Full-Service Retail
If NYC wants to run its own government-cheese program at its own expense, it is free to do so, but the federal government should not allow SNAP benefits to be used at a store that purposely undercuts the full-service full-product...
City Grocery Store to Offer Union Jobs in 3.5 Years
don't worry, in 3.5 years, we will have some union jobs in our city-run grocery store
Transparency Needed: Release Raw Data for NYC AV Tests
"FFS, are we going to toss out all the NYCDOT reports about how their bike lanes improve safety? Are we going to toss out the decongestion pricing reports because they were written by the transit employees who want transit to...
Congestion Pricing Hasn't Cut Manhattan For‑hire Trips
There's been no real change in total for-hire vehicle trips in, to, and from core Manhattan since the 1/25 implementation of congestion pricing (although there is some movement within categories). They *are* still down since before COVID-19, illustrating the confounding...
Nurses Strike for Security Amid Rising Patient Violence
Remember, a nurse wrote a NYT op ed that part of the reason the nurses were on strike was that they wanted more police/security protection from disturbed patients. And the fact that these attacks aren't uncommon is almost certainly holding...
20 Mph Urban Speed Limits Proven to Cut Traffic Deaths
It's always interesting when people say something that they think is an extreme reductio ad absurdum but that is actually good policy. A 20mph (or thereabouts) speed limit in a dense urban environment coupled with consistent automated enforcement is sound,...
Mayor Mamdani Reneges on Rent Freeze Promise
We've gone from "Zohran will immediately freeze the rent" to "so, what I'll say is the Rent Guidelines Board is an independent entity." A big reason that Mamdani's first 100 days have gone OK is his startlingly forthright willingness to...