Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo appointed a 16-person panel to “Fix NYC” — or at least its traffic problem.
The panel, announced Thursday, is made up of transportation experts, business leaders and politicians, and is tasked with proposing a plan to reduce congestion on city streets, as well as funding the MTA, a state-run agency.
The recommendations will be given to Cuomo in December, ahead of next year’s legislative system, the governor’s office said.
“I look forward to hearing the panel’s proposals to help bring relief to millions of New Yorkers and visitors who drive on our streets and rely on mass transit every day,” Cuomo said in a statement.
Members of the panel include Tom Prendergast, former chairman of the MTA, Mitchell L. Moss, director of the Rudin Center for Transportation, and David A. Paterson, former New York governor. There is only one woman on the panel: Kathy Wylde, the president and CEO of Partnership for New York.
The announcement of the panel comes as Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio spar over how to fund the MTA, which has an $836 million plan to improve the city’s failing subway system. The state wants the city to fund half of the $836 million, but de Blasio refused.
The mayor also opposes congestion pricing, which Cuomo has brought back as an option. Instead, de Blasio proposed a millionaire’s tax to fund the MTA. That tax would require approval from the State Legislature.
