La Guardia had to surrender control of city tunnels to obtain road money

Evidence

To a man who valued power as highly as did La Guardia, the price—which would give Moses a monopoly over all new intracity water crossings, tunnels as well as bridges—was outrageously steep. In his files can be found a memorandum from Moses giving details. Across it is scrawled, in huge letters in the Mayor’s handwriting, a single word: LOUSY! — Robert A. Caro, The Power Broker, 2716