The odd little bridge faces change
The Atlantic Beach bridge, Long Island's only paid toll bridge, charged 50 cents when it opened in 1952. It costs $2 to cross now. Credit: Debbie Egan-Chin
The approach to the Atlantic Beach Bridge to Long Beach is always a bit surprising for me, then nostalgic, then annoying, then triumphant.
Directionally challenged to the point of using Waze to navigate even the work commute, I see the signs announcing the $2 toll and think "Oh right. . . the money bridge!"
Then, "It’s so cute how it doesn’t take Ez-Pass and it’s $2, not $16.50."
Then "I don’t have $2!! Why don’t they take E-ZPass??"
Then I pay from the seemingly inexhaustible supply of sticky change in my console, chortle victoriously, and drive on.
The only bridge in the region that does not accept E-ZPass, the Atlantic Beach Bridge is cute and odd.
But when the Nassau County comptroller’s office earlier this month released its audit of the Nassau County Bridge Authority that operates it, massive abuses were expected. After all, that’s what happened in 1999, when a state audit uncovered much mismanagement and patronage.
This audit did find some issues, like giving decals for free passage to families of board members and employees. And it cited the sort of cash-handling and procurement imperfections that seemingly every audit turns up. For an authority that Executive Director Vincent Grasso called "as close to a ‘Mom and Pop’ government operation as you can find," that’s not terribly surprising.
But there was no smoking gun in the $6.5 million-a-year operation.
It’s worth noting that the toll, 50 cents in 1952 when the bridge opened, would be $5 now if it rose with inflation. But the toll would be zero if the authority had dissolved when the bridge-building bonds were paid off, if it were handed to the county.
The authority has also gone from 68 full-time positions in 2008 to 32 today. But paying people to collect the money that then funds their paychecks feels circular and pointless when machines do it more cheaply.
The audit points out a case of nepotism in 2016-2017, of a son working for a father in the maintenance department. Asked about it, authority chair Jim Villardi laughed and said, "Do you think anybody wants these jobs anymore? We can’t find anyone to take them!"
The authority plans to build a new toll plaza, and must decide whether to do E-ZPass or keep pursuing its own cashless system it began during the pandemic. It now has two lanes of license readers that generate bills mailed to houses.
But there is no economical way to chase $2, Grasso admits. Once people realize they don’t have to pay, many won’t. E-ZPass would charge most people immediately.
You can make a case for killing the toll, turning the bridge over to the county, and maintaining it properly. Ditto going to cashless tolling via E-ZPass.
But when I drive over the Atlantic Beach Bridge, I wish it was more old-fashioned, not less.
Grasso and I had a good laugh over the toll booths of our childhood, begging to be the one to throw the coins at the basket, jeering when a sibling’s dime missed.
And I must not be the only one who can’t let go.
The old basket collectors are still in storage.
If I was king I’d put the baskets back up, set the toll back to 50 cents, give the proceeds to charity, have the county maintain the bridge and let the kids toss the quarters.
It would be like a time machine, which is to say, like Atlantic Beach itself.
Columnist Lane Filler's opinions are his own.
Lane Filler is a member of the Newsday editorial board.
