The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, doing business as MTA Bridges and Tunnels, is an affiliate agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, that operates seven intrastate toll bridges and two tunnels in New York City. In terms of traffic volume, it is the largest bridge and tunnel toll agency in the United States serving more than a million people each day and generating more than $1.5 billion in toll revenue annually as of 2012.
The seven bridges are:
- Triborough Bridge (officially Robert F. Kennedy Bridge), the agency's original namesake and flagship crossing, connecting Manhattan, the Bronx, and Queens, via Randalls and Wards Islands
- Bronxâ€"Whitestone Bridge, connecting the Bronx and Queens
- Verrazanoâ€"Narrows Bridge, connecting Brooklyn and Staten Island
- Throgs Neck Bridge, connecting the Bronx and Queens
- Henry Hudson Bridge, connecting Manhattan and the Bronx
- Marine Parkwayâ€"Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, connecting Brooklyn and the Rockaways (Queens)
- Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge, connecting Broad Channel to the Rockaways (Queens)
The two tunnels are:
- Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel (officially Hugh L. Carey Tunnel), connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan
- Queensâ€"Midtown Tunnel, connecting Queens and Manhattan
History
Originally named the Triborough Bridge Authority, the authority was created in 1933 as a public-benefit corporation by the New York State Legislature. It was tasked with completing construction of the Triborough Bridge, which had been started by New York City in 1929 but had stalled due to the Great Depression.
Under the chairmanship of Robert Moses, the agency grew in a series of mergers with four other agencies:
- Henry Hudson Parkway Authority, in 1940
- Marine Parkway Authority, in 1940
- New York City Parkway Authority, in 1940
- New York City Tunnel Authority, in 1946
With the last merger in 1946, the authority was renamed the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority. Generating millions of dollars in toll revenue annually, the TBTA easily became a powerful city agency as it was capable of funding large capital projects. From the 1940s-60s, the TBTA built the Battery Parking Garage, Jacob Riis Beach Parking Field, Coliseum Office Building and Exposition Center and East Side Airlines Terminal, as well as many parks in the city.
The TBTA was merged into the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in 1968. Surplus revenue, formerly used for new automobile projects, would now be used to support public transportation. Since then, more than $10 billion has been contributed by the TBTA to subsidize mass transit fares and capital improvements for the New York City Transit, Long Island Rail Road, and Metro-North Railroad. The MTA Bridges and Tunnels trading name was adopted in 1994. The name Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority is still the legal name of the Authority and was used publicly between 1946 and 1994.
Law enforcement
The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA) employs approximately 700 Bridge and Tunnel Officers who are NYS Peace Officers authorized to make arrests and carry firearms. BTO's patrol the Authority's 9 facilities on foot and in marked patrol cars, which are now painted to resemble New York State vehicles. Besides law enforcement, the BTO's collect tolls (exceptions being the Hugh Carey and Midtown Tunnels, which switched to electronic toll collection only beginning January 4, 2017) They also assist vehicles stuck in E-ZPass lanes, operate tow trucks to clear disabled vehicles, and clear snow from the roadways. The TBTA also has a Special Operations Division/Collision Reduction Unit, which enforces all aspects of the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law and NYC Traffic Rules with a main emphasis on speed enforcement.
Toll rates
E-ZPass rates are for tags issued by the New York Customer Service Center only -- vehicles with E-ZPass accounts from other agencies pay the cash rate. Tolls are charged in both directions unless otherwise noted. All rates are effective on March 19, 2017.
Open-road cashless tolling will be implemented in all MTA Bridges and Tunnels facilities by the end of 2017. The Henry Hudson Bridge already has open-road tolling, and the two tunnels would be the next facilities to have cashless tolling facilities. The tollbooths will be gradually dismantled, and drivers will no longer be able to pay cash at the bridge. Instead, there will be cameras mounted onto new overhead gantries near where the booths are currently located. Drivers without E-ZPass will have a picture of their license plate taken, and the toll will be mailed to them. For E-ZPass users, sensors will detect their transponders wirelessly.
Prohibited traffic
Part 1022 of the Rules and Regulations Governing the Use of the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority Facilities prohibits certain types of vehicles, such as:
- Vehicles with flat, solid, or metal tires
- Bicycles on the roadways. Bicycles may be walked across the Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge, the Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, and the Triborough Bridge
- Mopeds
- Horses and horse-drawn vehicles
- Trucks and other non-passenger autos on the Henry Hudson Bridge
References
External links
- Official website
- TBTA Copyright page
- HISTORY AND PROJECTION OF TRAFFIC, TOLL REVENUES AND EXPENSES and Review of Physical Conditions of the Facilities of Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority
