(The following story by Jennifer Barrios appeared on the Newsday website on June 11.)
NEW YORK — Standing outside a coffee shop in Grand Central Terminal yesterday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced his support for two new Long Island Rail Road stations in Queens and two Metro-North stations in the Bronx if his congestion-pricing plan is successful.
The new LIRR stations would be located in Elmhurst and Corona [CORRECTION: A story yesterday about Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s plan for congestion pricing mischaracterized the status of two Long Island Rail Road stations. The stations in Corona and Elmhurst currently exist and are not being used. They would be recommissioned under Bloomberg’s plan. The stations would be used to extend the LIRR to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan. PG. A17 ALL 6/12/07]. The Metro-North stations would be built in Co-op City and Parkchester. Some of the $500 million in federal gridlock funding that the city is seeking would pay for the new stations, mayoral spokesman Stu Loeser said.
Bloomberg said if the congestion-pricing plan, called PlaNYC, is implemented, the stations would begin to be built as soon as a year from now.
The plan calls for motorists to pay $8 to drive into parts of Manhattan during peak hours. The proceeds from the charge would go to improve mass transit, including the four new stations.
The plan has received several key endorsements, including that of Gov. Eliot Spitzer. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-Elmhurst) also endorsed the plan yesterday. Crowley noted that most of his constituents do not drive into Manhattan during the hours when the congestion-pricing plan would be in effect.