New York City’s congestion pricing aims to reduce traffic, cut carbon

Officials recently released an environmental assessment that analyzes seven different possible pricing schemes for New York City’s congestion pricing program.

The program, expected to begin in late 2023 or early 2024, would charge vehicles a fee for entering the city’s central business district in lower Manhattan south of 60th Street. The study examined the potential impact of various fee structures ranging from $5 to $23 for passenger cars and $12 to $82 for commercial trucks.

Emergency vehicles and those transporting people with disabilities would be exempt. Low-income residents who live inside the zone would be eligible for state tax credits.

All fee systems studied except one would raise at least $1 billion per year. The volume of vehicles entering the central district would decline by 15% to 20% and public transit ridership could increase by up to 2%, the study found.

The U.S. Department of Transportation must approve the city’s plan before it can be implemented.

The editors of Building Design+Construction present 10 “Great Solutions” that highlight innovative technology and products that can be used to address some of the many problems Building Teams face in their day-to-day work. Readers are encouraged to submit entries for Great Solutions; if we use yours, you’ll receive a $25 gift certificate. Look for more Great Solutions in 2012 at: www.bdcnetwork.com/greatsolutions/2012.

Rainscreen system installed at the west building envelope expansion of the University of Arizona’s Meinel Optical Sciences Center in Tucson, with its folded glass wall and copper-paneled, breathable cladding over precast concrete.

| Dec 10, 2011

Energy performance starts at the building envelope

Rainscreen system installed at the west building expansion of the University of Arizona’s Meinel Optical Sciences Center in Tucson, with its folded glass wall and copper-paneled, breathable cladding over precast concrete.

| Dec 10, 2011

Turning Balconies Outside In

Operable glass balcony glazing systems provide solution to increase usable space in residential and commercial structures.

| Dec 10, 2011

BIM tools to make your project easier to manage

Two innovations—program manager Gafcon’s SharePoint360 project management platform and a new BIM “wall creator” add-on developed by ClarkDietrich Building Systems for use with the Revit BIM platform and construction consultant—show how fabricators and owner’s reps are stepping in to fill the gaps between construction and design that can typically be exposed by working with a 3D model.