During a “virtual” town hall meeting in Albany on March 21, State Senator Pedro Espada Jr. announced that he now favors tolls on four East River bridges.

Charging motorists $2 per crossing would generate $525 million each year, Espada said, and “directly pay for the free students MetroCards” that the MTA is threatening to abolish.

His decision to support the tolls is something of an about face.  Last year, he helped crush a similar proposal.  At the time, he said tolls over the East River and Harlem River (13 bridges were included in the initial plan) would hurt small businesses and the middle class.   

Espada’s constituents and other interested parties were able to watch the town hall meeting online or on the cable channel BRONXNET. Or they could listen in by phone by calling a toll-free number. Questions were submitted beforehand as well as during the event. Most pertained to the economy and the budget. Aside from tolling bridges, Espada said he supports raising additional revenue by charging non-profits property tax.

On the Bronx News Network’s blog, some readers posted comments criticizing the format of the event. One wrote: “When will Espada do a Town Hall in the district so he can really hear from his constituents? Doing this in Albany is just a way of avoiding the hard questions people will have for him.”

Indeed, if tough questions were posed, they weren’t taken up by the moderator. Espada wasn’t asked about Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s investigation into his healthcare network, nor did he address concerns that his recent housing bill may actually benefit landlords, not tenants. 

Espada himself called the meeting a success.  “I think it’s been great,” he said,  wrapping things up. “I know the citizens of the Bronx appreciate it.” He said it was the first ever Bronx town hall meeting broadcast live from the capital, and that he’d like to do more in the future.