Daily News Briefs, September 27, 2022

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Florida Governor Suspends Some Tolling Ahead Of Hurricane Ian

WUSF reports, in preparation for emergency evacuations ahead of the Florida landfall of Hurricane Ian, Governor Ron DeSantis has ordered the indefinite suspension of toll collection on several Florida DOT and Florida’s Turnpike facilities — Alligator Alley (I-75), the Suncoast Parkway, the Polk Parkway, the Pinellas Bayway and Sunshine Skyway Bridge, and the Garcon Point Bridge — as well as on the Mid-Bay Bridge and Spence Parkway, and THEA’s Selmon and Veterans Expressways.

Tampa Bay Times reports on evacuation preparations underway in the Tampa Bay area, where it’s anticipated the hurricane will come onshore.

WTSP reports that transportation agencies are halting construction, opening lanes and removing potential hazards to facilitate travel by evacuees from the Tampa Bay region.

Miami Herald reports, Miami-Dade and Broward Counties are under a tropical storm watch as of this morning.

Florida Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE) Highway-Tunnel-Bridge Safety (Includes COVID-19 Impacts) Miami-Dade County Mid-Bay Bridge Authority Tampa Bay-Hillsborough County FL Metro Area Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA)

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NJ Governor And Transportation Boss Try Again To Block Congestion Pricing

POLITICO reports, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy (D) “continued his campaign against New York’s plan to toll drivers heading into Manhattan’s central business district with a new letter late last week to Federal Highway Administration. The letter includes comments similar to a previous letter Murphy sent in early September . . . , arguing New Jersey didn’t have enough time to digest a 4,000-page environmental analysis released this summer.” Attached to the letter are several pages of congestion pricing “technical comments” — essentially criticisms — obtained from New Jersey transportation agencies. (Those agencies, which include the turnpike authority, are ultimately controlled by Murphy and NJDOT Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti.) POLITICO notes, “Some of the Murphy administration critiques are a bit eyebrow-raising . . . , like concerns that congestion pricing would ‘drive new traffic to disadvantaged communities’ near the Holland Tunnel. Right now, [Murphy and Gutierrez-Scaccetti are] backing a plan to expand the roads heading toward the Holland Tunnel, something New Jersey public transit advocates and officials in Jersey City worry will drive new traffic to environmental justice communities near the tunnel.”

NorthJersey.com also covers this story.

Congestion Pricing Environmental Protection Policies Procedures And Initiatives Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New Jersey New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) New York New York City

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New York Bill Would Stop Scofflaws From Circumventing Registration Holds

The Post-Journal reports, New York state legislation (designated A10711 and S8880) proposes to increase sanctions and penalties for purposefully “covering, defacing, and otherwise obscuring license plates to evade tolls and law enforcement.” Among other things, it would block any registration transaction, including a renewal, transfer or replacement, when the vehicle’s identification number is associated with a suspension imposed by a toll agency. The sponsors say scofflaws currently avoid a registration suspension “by simply reregistering the vehicle with a family member or friend.” The bill also increases the fine for an obscured plate violation and empowers police to confiscate obstructed and obscured plates.

Crime Beat ETC Systems New York New York City Scofflaws

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These are just some of the toll industry developments TRN is following.

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