Bloomberg Aims to Take NYC Green

Michael Bloomberg chose Earth Day to launch an ambitious, expensive and politically uncertain campaign to make New York City “the first environmentally sustainable 21st-century city.” The most provocative proposal: charging drivers $8 a day for entering Manhattan below 86th Street.

Congestion pricing, which would help fund green transportation projects as well as reducing traffic and pollution, drew immediate fireworks from outer borough politicians and residents. The plan also calls for a million more trees, more hybrid vehicles and more energy-efficient power plants. It would require huge investments from the state and federal government. (More New York City stories.)