Press Attack Pricing Proposal at Trust Fund Renewal Press Conference

NJPIRG organized the kick-off press conference for renewal of the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund at the State House in Trenton November 30. NJPIRG's Drew Kodjak and representatives of eight other organizations announced the formation of the NJ Alliance for Transportation

Reform, a coalition promoting renewal of the Trust Fund in a manner that fosters transit and reduces car-dependence. Attendees included the director of the United Merchants & Homeowners of Jersey City and the head of the United Transportation Union (transit workers). The Alliance's message

was that state policy must seek to reduce the $26 billion lost to traffic congestion in NJ each year.

To help reduce these costs, the Alliance offered a five-point plan: 1) Improve public transit; 2) Institute transportation demand management policies instead of widening highways; 3) Institute market-based road pricing; 4) Set aside 2% of the Trust Fund for bicycling and pedestrian improvements

and programs; and 5) Reform zoning and development guidelines to foster transit- and pedestrian-friendly communities.

Reporters from the Star-Ledger, Philadelphia Inquirer, the Courier-News and the Associated Press jumped at the market-based pricing point, focusing throughout the news conference on the costs to drivers of possible gas tax increases, VMT fees, congestion pricing and cashing out parking.

Ignored were points about costs of congestion and a second-rate transportation system. Drew Kodjak spent time with each reporter afterward, trying to balance the coverage. The AP reporter did not believe cashing-out parking would be revenue neutral, while the Inquirer rep thought the proposals

were out of touch with political reality.