Verrazano-Narrows Bridge toll hike ‘insane,’ Gentile says
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s plan to raise the toll on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to an eye-popping $15 is not only wrong, it’s “insanely prohibitive,” according to Councilman Vincent Gentile (D-Bay Ridge-Dyker Heights-Bensonhurst), who said he has been hearing complaints from his constituents angered at the idea of paying such a high cost to drive from Brooklyn to Staten Island.
Gentile submitted written testimony to a public hearing the MTA held this week on its plan to raise bridge and tunnel tolls, as well as bus and subway fares.
The toll is currently $13 for a round trip. The toll is collected from drivers traveling westbound. Eastbound motorists drive across the bridge for free.
“Never before has a $13 round-trip toll on a bridge not connected to Manhattan seemed more insanely prohibitive than in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy as first responders and volunteers racing to help realize they can’t afford to make the necessary trips back and forth to transport supplies,” Gentile said.