State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli in a report last week concurred with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s assessment that its capital plan is underfunded and would be even more so if the state and New York City don’t pass a congestion pricing bill.
The MTA’s six-year capital plan proposal calls for $29.55 billion of spending but only identifies $20.25 billion of funding sources, including $8.5 billion of bonds secured by congestion pricing funds and additional state and local aid. Without approval of congestion pricing or an alternative funding source, the funding gap would grow to $13.8 billion.
“The MTA is absolutely vital to the region’s economy,” DiNapoli said in a news release. “The system must be kept in good repair and crucial expansion projects must be completed as planned and on time. But the MTA can’t close the funding gap without the help of the state and the city. And the MTA should not rely too heavily on debt. Debt service is already placing increasing pressure on the MTA’s operating budget.”
The MTA’s proposed capital program, which was mandated by legislation to consider congestion pricing, is 36.6% larger on an annual basis than the authority’s current plan and would be its largest ever, according to the report.
The Legislature must approve a traffic mitigation program by March 31 to qualify for $355 million of federal transportation grants that were conditionally approved last year.
The report warned that the MTA’s growing level of debt will increase pressure on the operating budget as the percentage of fare and toll revenue used for debt service will rise from 28% this year to 43% by 2017. However, those percentages don’t include any assumed fare and toll increases at the rate of inflation.
