Buffalo businessman and developer Carl Paladino is up to something again. Paladino, who led a successful drive last year to remove toll barriers on the I-190 (Niagara Thruway) section of the New York State Thruway, has set forth on a new cause, ending the collection of the Grand Island bridge tolls. The Grand Island Bridges carry Interstate 190 and NY 324 across the eastern channel of the Niagara River between Tonawanda and Niagara Falls, and there are no other bridges that connect Grand Island to the rest of the world. In a letter to New York Governor Eliot Spitzer this week, Paladino laid out his argument against the levy of bridge tolls in both financial and moral terms. While the letter does not mention the course of legal action, Paladino is hoping Spitzer will do the right thing and continue to tear down the Berlin Wall against Buffalo-area commuters. Paladino's reasoning: The Thruway Authority collected $20.6 million in toll revenue from the Grand Island bridges last year...
Because every road has a story.