Brooklyn – On the eve of a vote by the Metropolitan Transit Authority to increase fares, State Senator Martin J. Golden (R-C-I, Brooklyn), Congressman Michael Grimm (R-C, Brooklyn, Staten Island) and Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-C, Brooklyn, Staten Island) are again urging Metropolitan Transit Authority Chairman Joseph Lhota and all board members, to oppose the plan to raise tolls on the Verrazano-Bridge at tomorrow's meeting.

The plan would make the Verrazano Bridge the most expensive bridge in the world. The MTA is considering a plan to raise the cash payment $2 dollars to $15 and the increase would be $1.06 for those with E-Z Pass.

In the letter, authored by the three elected officials, it stated, “No time has been better than now for the MTA to show New Yorkers that it does in fact account for the personal financial

responsibility of their customers when making such decisions. It is something that New Yorkers are not willing to accept. We hear this in our community, along our commercial avenues and in our

homes. We ask you to oppose this plan and look forward to working with you to create a more fiscally responsible approach that will be more acceptable to our constituents."