“It is an outrage that construction contractors on the Tappan Zee Bridge continue to break morning work deadlines that cause massive travel delays. Their failure to ensure that lanes were reopened on time has placed an undue burden on thousands of residents who cross the span every day. When commuters are stuck in traffic, it hurts our economy, impacts our quality of life and damages our environment.
"According to the Texas Transportation Institute's 2011 Urban Mobility Report, in the United States alone, congestion costs more than $100 billion dollars, or $750 for every commuter in the nation, with rush hour accounting for 40% of the delay.
"There must be a zero tolerance stand so that commuters can have faith that construction will not delay their morning commute. I am calling for increasing construction contractor fines from $1,000 to $10,000 for every minute they break the morning work stop deadline."
