Leave it to some politicans who have no courage to live up to their responsibility as elected officals and those who pushed to end the bridge tolls on the CCC to show their true colors and selfish ego's. Those people had no back up plans to keep the Algiers ferry in operation full time that the people have depended on for over 70 plus years, especially those who live in Old Algiers. (Algiers Point)
The vote to lift the tolls took away the financing of the Algiers ferry and eliminated millions of dollars in revenue for the state. All we heard from those who wanted the tolls to end was the excuse that the toll money was not being properly used. Never mind holding our elected officials accountable for the money to be spent wisely if it was not, they just wanted the tolls to go. They did not care about the people of Algiers who depend on ferry service to downtown New Orleans and the burden that would put on them.
The states elected officials should have made the decision themselves on the tolls instead of putting it up for a vote by the people, but that would have taken courage which is in short supply. So people who use neither the CCC or the ferry decided the fate of the people of Algiers. Free bridges, free streets, free ferry, free municipal services and free infracture repairs, let some one else pay. Now the people of Algiers have to pay the price because no one had a plan in place that would finance the ferry for full time operations immediately if the tolls were voted off.
Many of those who pushed the no tolls did not even bother to check the history of the Algiers ferry service and the positive role it played in the lives of the people in Algiers. And as of this writing there is still no financing available to keep the ferry in operation full time. Sadly, that really says it all.
This commentary written by John Lucia
