Good morning. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority board approved New York City congestion pricing on Wednesday. However, implementation will be delayed until lawsuits challenging the tolls are resolved.
Passenger vehicles will be charged $15, trucks will be charged up to $36 and motorcycles will be charged $7.50. New York City buses and municipal vehicles will be exempt. Yellow and green cabs can avoid the $15 charge, but could face a $1.25 surcharge if they enter the congestion zone. The tolls are expected to generate $1 billion annually for the MTA.
Here’s a bite-sized look at what else we are hearing:
Connecticut’s scenic stonewalls may be sanctuaries for Lyme disease-carrying ticks. According to a study by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, ticks were three times as dense along stone walls compared with areas without walls. The CDC said almost 500,000 people are treated for Lyme disease annually.
Sunrise Wind receives federal Record of Decision. The 924-megawatt wind farm needs one more approval before construction begins in Long Island waters. Developers Ørsted and Eversource officials expect the project to be complete in 2026 and power nearly 600,000 New York homes.
EPA settles with a school bus company. The agency settled with First Student for over $95,000. It found the Ohio-based company violated federal clean air standards after it allowed its buses in Connecticut to run idly for over three minutes at a time. Fumes from idle engines emit harmful pollutants and may irritate those with asthma and other lung conditions.
One man charged in the killing of NYPD officer Jonathan Diller. Diller was shot while conducting a traffic stop in Queens on Monday. The driver and gunman, Lindy Jones, has 14 prior arrests. The passenger, Guy Rivera, has been arrested over 20 times, according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Diller was from Massapequa Park. He leaves behind a wife and one-year-old son.
PWHL New York won’t play their final game in Bridgeport. The state’s women’s hockey team will finish their season at Nassau County’s UBS Arena, home of the NHL’s New York Islanders. It’s rumored this is due to poor attendance at Bridgeport’s Total Mortgage Arena, with only about 1,000 fans per game. Over 4,000 people came to the team’s March game at UBS.
New Haven resident arrested for lying about ISIS ties. Mohamed Kamash immigrated from Iraq in 2014. An FBI investigation found two of his brothers are or have been members of the terrorist group. Kamash faces up to five years in prison for telling immigration services that he did not know anyone involved with ISIS.
Bruce Blakeman calls for more special deputy sheriff applicants. The Nassau County executive encourages retired cops, veterans and local gun owners to apply. The deputies are called to assist police under certain emergency declarations. Applicants must be between 21 and 72 years old, own a pistol license, own property or a business and consent to a background check. The county has 60 deputy sheriffs and 2,500 police officers.
Aquarion’s PURA appeal was partially dismissed. A Connecticut Superior Court judge dismissed nine counts of the water company’s appeal to a PURA rate cut. It would have decreased customer's water bills by 11% — almost $70 annually. Aquarion requested a total annual revenue of $236 million. PURA has instead reduced it to $195.5 million.
Six Bridgeport schools are no longer in danger of closing by 2025. Superintendent Carmela Levy-David dropped the proposal to close the schools this year, to give consultants more time to assess the buildings. A study will be used to determine the viability of the district’s infrastructure. Levy-David said she still intends to shutter the six schools once the study is complete.
