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Edwunclerthe3rd t1_jd3lnp0 wrote

Reply to comment by LittleWind_ in In 2019 nyc voted to use congestion pricing to reduce carbon emissions. Three years it’s not implemented but at least the case study required by the National Environmental Protection Act is done…. 4007 pages. by tickleMyBigPoop

To add on, 4 years isnt really a long period of time for something that they have to modify infrastructure around. Traffic patterns, public transit load, and general behavior could change dramatically, and the city has to be able to anticipate that Edit: This usually culminates in a report such as a feasibility study or environmental impact statement

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CactusBoyScout t1_jd44vas wrote

The counterpoint is that making the process take this long is part of the reason projects cost so much and often don’t happen at all. When it takes longer than any politician’s term to even do the environmental review, it’s more likely projects will simply get canceled.

Also, in this case, it’s a toll. We’re not talking about demolishing entire neighborhoods to build a highway. If there’s a problem, they can turn it off.

Ezra Klein at the NYTimes has done some articles on how NY’s experience with congestion charging is a great example of how broken these systems are. Costs for all kinds of infrastructure projects skyrocketed when these kinds of reviews became mandatory in the 1970s.

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Edwunclerthe3rd t1_jd49an6 wrote

I'm slightly biased towards these reports as that is what I study in school, but I'm also aware that a 500 page statement is going to deter potential readers

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CactusBoyScout t1_jd4aj2v wrote

Do you feel like the system around these is working appropriately?

I’m not an expert, I just like reading about the mechanics of these projects when I can.

It seems to me, and a lot of non-experts, that timelines for projects like this are just way too long and that perhaps some reform of these processes is needed. Do you think that’s a fair assessment? Genuinely curious.

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Edwunclerthe3rd t1_jd73nj3 wrote

My problem with these is that like with most other services, the work is contracted out to consulting firms. Sometimes this makes sense, the city used a danish firm for the Cloudburst program due to their track record in Copenhagen, and sometimes we'd be better off with an in house assessment. The lack of oversight and long leash NYC gives contractors is astounding

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