LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Final cost for Tappan Zee

Posted

To the editor:

Last year, toll hikes were approved for the New York Thruway and the Mario Cuomo Bridge. This will be the first of many toll hikes in coming years.

Blaming lost revenues due to COVID-19 for toll hikes doesn’t tell the whole truth. Motorists and taxpayers still have to await the final outcome of the Tappan Zee Bridge construction contractors lawsuit against the New York State Thruway Authority for $961 million, plus interest, for the additional incurred costs for work not compensated.

This includes overtime for project schedule acceleration and change orders to the base contract for additional work. What is the real relationship of the new toll hikes to cover these potential costs?

Toll hikes are how Gov. Cuomo always intended to find several billion to pay for construction. The real final price tag for construction of the new Tappan Zee Bridge, instead of $3.9 billion, may end up closer to $5 billion.

The Citizen Budget Commission previously reported that tolls on the new bridge will likely increase from $5 to $10.50 over time.

Cuomo made a cold political calculation by promising not to raise the tolls when running for another term in 2018. To pay back the $1.6 billion Federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Improvement Act loan, and $1 billion thruway authority bond — as well as up to $961 million in final payment to the contractor — tolls always had to go up sooner or later.

What is the schedule and current status for paying back both loans?

Moody’s Investors Service estimated the tolls will go up $15 by 2026 for the thruway authority to be able to pay back the loan, bond and resolution of up to $961 million more in contractor final payment claims.

Cuomo will exit Albany leaving taxpayers and commuters paying higher fares, taxes and tolls in coming years for a final project cost closer to $5 billion than his proposed $3.98 billion to cover the tab.

When will state comptroller Tom DiNapoli audit this project to determine if there was any waste, fraud or abuse of taxpayer dollars?

There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch — or in this case, construction of a bridge. At the end of the day, someone has to pay.

Larry Penner

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Larry Penner,

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