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In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

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Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#311

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Diesel is less fuel efficient than regular gasoline except when you measure by volume. It gets fewer miles per unit of energy in the fuel.

Fuel is sold by volume, which is why volumetric fuel efficiency is desirable to the consumer

Fuel is sold by volume and fuel type; diesel is about 25% more expensive per gallon than regular gasoline where I am.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#312

I'm curious how congestion pricing became a national issue. The strength of conviction people have about this policy–almost either way, but certainly among those against–seems to scale with distance from the city. Nobody in Idaho gets uppity about New Jersey's tolls. But they have strong, knowledge-free, almost identity-defining opinions about congestion charges. Is it because it's a policy that's worked in Europe an…

Cars are en extension of some Americans' identity and driving is something they feel utterly entitled to. I've lived all over the world and in NYC for decades so it seems silly to me. Bust most Americans have never seen or ridden an effective form of public transport. So they view congestion pricing as an infringement on their rights and quality of life.

I agree, and would add that there are others who are decidedly "anti-car" and you could say that this is part of their identity. This particular policy may be a strictly positive (no strong opinion here), but when viewed as part of the broader disagreement it drives some of the reflexive pushback.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#313

Earlier quoted context omitted.

ehhh, they certainly can and do... but I think there's a case to be made that this can be lower when managed appropriately

My only experience is BMW EV, but my i4 aggressively prioritizes regeneration over using the brakes. It even has an energy meter that shows negative/positive energy flow. The positive flow is blue until the actual brakes engage where it changes to black. And this is in two pedal mode, one pedal driving is even more aggressive about regen. I would not doubt I use my breaks 1/20th of the amount that our X5 or Silverado…

It varies by model, I know some lower end EVs from GM still use the breaks quite often depending on the driving mode.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#314

I'm curious how congestion pricing became a national issue. The strength of conviction people have about this policy–almost either way, but certainly among those against–seems to scale with distance from the city. Nobody in Idaho gets uppity about New Jersey's tolls. But they have strong, knowledge-free, almost identity-defining opinions about congestion charges. Is it because it's a policy that's worked in Europe an…

Because success would encourage it in other cities facing terrible traffic.

People say they hate socialism, but drivers love car-socialism.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#315
post #2

> Particulates issued from tailpipes can aggravate asthma and heart disease and increase the risk of lung cancer and heart attack. Globally, they are a leading risk factor for premature death. Minor nitpick, but tailpipes aren't the primary source of emissions. The study is about PM2.5[0]. which will chiefly be tires and brake pads. Modern gasoline engines are relatively clean, outside of CO2, though diesel engines s…

There are some early tyre and brake dust collection systems which might help, but that won't do much for the road dust.

I've been wondering whether, theoretically, if self driving cars become widely usable and deployed in cities, will they be able to safely operate with harder tyre compounds and harder road surfaces that shed less but don't grip as well?

If nothing else, less aggressive driving should lead to less shedding.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#316

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it's because it disproportionately impacts the people who can least afford it. It allows the wealthy to continue to enjoy the convenience (relative to alternatives) of driving into the city while polluting and causing traffic at a price that has zero impact on their lives while it punishes those who already have much less and whose lives will be impacted by the fines and the often significant amounts of time…

I think this comment is a great example of what the OP is talking about. Your comment is completely divorced from the context of congestion pricing in New York City . For example: > Taking a basic task like driving into the city, something many people are forced to do for work That is simply not the case in NYC. Very, very few people must drive into the center of Manhattan to work. It was already unaffordable to do s…

You're replying to someone with the username "autoexec".

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#317
post #297
post #2

> Particulates issued from tailpipes can aggravate asthma and heart disease and increase the risk of lung cancer and heart attack. Globally, they are a leading risk factor for premature death. Minor nitpick, but tailpipes aren't the primary source of emissions. The study is about PM2.5[0]. which will chiefly be tires and brake pads. Modern gasoline engines are relatively clean, outside of CO2, though diesel engines s…

It always surprises me when people want stop signs in their neighborhood for traffic calming. The last thing I want is all of the noise and pollution of vehicles stopping and starting over and over again; surely various piece of road furniture like bulb-outs, roundabouts, etc, do a better job with fewer drawbacks. Other than cost, of course.

My assumption is that stop signs act somewhat as a way to enforce the lower speed limits in residential areas. There's several stretches without stops in my suburb where I've seen drivers whizzing by very obviously above the 25mph speed limit, which is bad enough on its own but becomes a serious hazard when combined with the massive blind spots that come from curbs on both directions being filled to the brim with parked cars.

A better solution would probably be radar-based speed signs with printed threats of fines, though.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#318

One thing that irks me about these schemes is that they often ignore cities role as regional hubs -- i.e. many cities became cities because they serve as geographical gateways interlocking the surrounding region. They are happy to take the benefits of being at the hub, but (increasingly) adopt a nativistic dialogue with the rest of the spokes. I get that no one likes highways running through their communities, but wh…

Robert Moses has you covered.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#319

How does NYC congestion pricing deal with disparate impacts? Real question, I don't live near NYC

https://portal.311.nyc.gov/article/?kanumber=KA-03612 > Some drivers can apply for Low-Income Discount or Low-Income Tax Credit for Residents. > A 50% discount is available for low-income vehicle owners enrolled in the Low-Income Discount Plan (LIDP). This discount begins after the first 10 trips in a calendar month and applies to all peak period trips after that for the remainder of the calendar month. The revenue a…

I hate this distinctly American idea that no policy can cause any detriment to any disadvantaged people at all, even if the policy effects are incredibly income-progressive overall. This is how we end up with carveouts for every special interest group in every single policy, the populace justifying turnstile hopping, lack of traffic enforcement by police, opposition to speed and red light cameras, opposition to rezoning unless it's built by free-range grass-fed vegan union labour and 100% below market, etc.

Re: In New York City, congestion pricing leads to marked drop in pollution

#320

One thing that irks me about these schemes is that they often ignore cities role as regional hubs -- i.e. many cities became cities because they serve as geographical gateways interlocking the surrounding region. They are happy to take the benefits of being at the hub, but (increasingly) adopt a nativistic dialogue with the rest of the spokes. I get that no one likes highways running through their communities, but wh…

Both NY and SF were regional hubs before cars disfigured them. No commercial vehicle is going to be discouraged by a $10 dollar charge, and trade is so much easier when the roads aren't clogged by single people demanding 1000 sq-ft of ground space to move around.
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