DiNapoli: New York MTA Capital Gap Could Exceed $12B

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Commuters exit a Metro-North Railroad train at Grand Central Terminal in New York, U.S., on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013. Metro-North Railroad, a subsidiary of New York State's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), is the second-largest commuter railroad in the U.S., taking passengers from Grand Central Station to Connecticut and the northern suburbs of New York City. Photographer: Ron Antonelli/Bloomberg

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's capital funding gap may exceed $12 billion, according to a report by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

DiNapoli's report, released July 24, found that despite $90 billion in capital investments since 1982, the MTA has not restored the entire transit system to a state of good repair, a federal efficiency metric, because it has not received all funding it sought and because cost overruns on large capital projects siphoned off resources that could have been used to modernize the system.

For example, East Side Access is now projected to cost $10.7 billion, more than twice its initial cost estimate, DiNapoli said.

"The MTA has to find a way to finance improvements without putting the financial burden on riders," said DiNapoli. "This can be achieved only by working closely with the federal government, New York state and New York City to develop a long-term financing program and by using resources effectively and efficiently. Otherwise, needed repairs will be pushed even further into the future, and fares and tolls could rise even faster."

MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz said the authority concurs with the basic parameters of the report.

"The investments we've made through the capital program have spearheaded a revitalization for our transit network and are one of the main reasons we're seeing record ridership levels today," he said. "Like all transit systems in America, the capital plan will always require public financial support and we look forward to a robust discussion with our elected officials and stakeholders to identify resources."

The authority's committees and full board are scheduled to meet at midtown Manhattan headquarters on July 28. In September, the authority will present its 2015-2019 capital program to the board.

At Gov. Andrew Cuomo's insistence, the MTA has formed a 28-member panel of outside experts, the Transportation Reinvention Commission, to provide input on the upcoming capital program. The commission is expected to report its findings early in September.

The committee is expected to examine priorities and financing for the next capital program.

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Transportation industry New York
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