Good — great! — on Gov. Hochul for waving the MTA off its foolish move to charge the New York Road Runners club $750,000 to close the Verrazano Bridge for the New York Marathon.
“I’ve directed the MTA to fix this mess and allow the marathon to move forward as it always has,” the gov told The Post.
The MTA’s bean-counters cited the cash it loses from tolls it doesn’t collect while runners cross, but failed to count the $1 million-plus that, per The Post’s analysis, it rakes in from vastly expanded subway ridership that day (and likely more fares in the days before and after the race from runners and tourists who visit for the Marathon).
And that only points to the real issue here: The Marathon is great for the city.
Nothing says New York City like the 54-year-old, five-borough, 26.2 mile trek from Staten Island across the Verrazzano through the concrete jungle’s iconic neighborhoods before ending in lush Central Park.
The Marathon attracts more than 50,000 runners from 148 countries and generates $425 million-plus for the city economy — which, ultimately, is what the MTA exists to serve.
Plus, it has raised $520 million for charity since 2006.
Oh, and the NYRR had been paying $100,000 for the bridge closure, and this year agreed to double that amount, yet the MTA threatened to limit the race to only one of the Verrazano’s two decks if it doesn’t get the full $750,000: How chintzy can you get?
Especially when New Yorkers are burning over the soon-to-kick-in congestion-pricing tolls, which will go a long way to replenishing the MTA’s beyond-empty coffers.
And never mind that it’s state lawmakers who’ve actually inflicted that scheme on us (and progressive politicians who’ve encouraged the farebeating that now costs the MTA $700 million a year); trying to hold up the Marathon was the MTA’s decision, and a stupid one.
It doesn’t matter that the NYRR club isn’t exactly impoverished: It’s still a nonprofit and a boon to charity and the whole town.
As Hochul put it: “The marathon is an iconic symbol of New York City’s tenacity and resilience that unites communities across the five boroughs each fall.”
All thanks to Hochul for shutting down a bad idea, fast.