New Jersey's legal reps reportedly vowed to appeal.
Per Gothamist: U.S. Senior Judge Leo Gordon issued the ruling last night, allowing the MTA to proceed with its plan to implement the toll as scheduled. The program has been in development for years and aims to reduce traffic congestion in Midtown and Lower Manhattan while generating billions of dollars in revenue for the MTA.
Gov. Hochul resurrected the plan in November after a summer postponement. Under the revised pricing, most passenger car drivers must pay a $9 toll when they enter Manhattan south of 60th Street (down from $15 in the previous plan). This is the first of its kind in the United States.
Background from CBS 2:
Manhattan's Congestion Relief Zone starts at 60th Street and heads south to include the Lincoln, Holland and Hugh L. Carey tunnels on the Hudson River side, and the Queensboro Bridge, Queens Midtown Tunnel, Williamsburg Bridge, Manhattan Bridge and Brooklyn Bridge on the East Side.Drivers will be charged when they enter the Congestion Relief Zone using the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queensboro or Williamsburg Bridges, or the Holland, Hugh L. Carey, Lincoln or Queens-Midtown tunnels.
There are many variables. From the MTA: "The toll amount will depend on the type of vehicle, time of day, whether any crossing credits apply, and the method of payment. There are also discounts and exemptions that will apply to certain drivers or vehicles entering the Congestion Relief Zone using an E-ZPass NY account."
Visit this MTA link (PDF!) for a breakdown of toll prices.
The story has been well-covered. Here's a selection of headlines to get you up to speed.
• Judge denies New Jersey request; congestion pricing will begin on Sunday (ABC7)
• Welcome to the Congestion Zone: New York Toll Program Is Set to Begin (The New York Times)
• Congestion Pricing Is Happening: Cue the Irrational Drama from the Placard Elite and the Suburbs (Streetsblog)
• Congestion pricing map NYC: See where tolls apply (PIX 11)
• Uber, Lyft spent millions pushing for NYC congestion pricing — and stand to make a killing (The Post)
53 comments:
this is so bad. hopefully new DOJ sues. very anti-american.
This is compounded by the fact that Uber and Lyft get away scot-free here, so bad, will not stand appeal. they don't pay into this...
Finally!
Everyone should be upset with congestion pricing. Deblasio messed up the city, he changed three lanes of traffic into two lanes, turned streets into public spaces. All which caused more bottle necks. Instead of helping to solve traffic problem he added to it. And now the city is charging a tax.
Ride-Share shouldve been included but this is a good start.
Its ideas like this that are the reason Trump won ugly.
About time, people over cars. Cities like London, Stockholm, and Singapore are widely recognized as examples where congestion pricing was initially unpopular but has since been accepted by residents, leading to noticeable improvements in traffic flow and overall quality of life within the city center; many people now see it as a positive change despite initial resistance. There are many articles on it including NY Times "Congestion Pricing’s Impact on New York? These 3 Cities Offer a Glimpse."
Not really true. Entering or picking up in the zone incurs a $1.50 charge, which is on top of the already existing $2.50 charge for being below 96th St. So an additional $4.00 per ride within the zone. Paid for by the rider of course.
Enforce MTA fare beating and the money is there. This will not reduce congestion or improve air quality. The borders are arbitrary. Avenue C is ‘midtown’ but Lincoln Center is not ?
I don’t drive - but CP is so unfair, disingenuous and hypocritical on all levels.
just one example….my relative is very wealthy, lives in an expensive apartment, uses Citibike and Uber, gets a lot of ecommerce.
He is for CP.
When another relative mentioned examples of the impact on “regular” people, my rich relative was stunned when told that a lot of his ecommerce (meal kits, fresh dog food) comes from gig workers who deliver using cars.
Also that several of the building staff including the night doorman drive to Manhattan - they live far away without easy access to mass transit.
My rich relative had not considered this.
"turned streets into public spaces"
The horror. Cities are for people to drive through, not live in.
Meant to say bigly. Damn auto correct.
if the companies aren't paying in, this is definitely anti-consumer
Very excited for this! At last NYC can join other great cities that have done this and hopefully pave an example for this to be done elsewhere.
If this was really about congestion, Uber and Lyft passengers would be paying $9 too. Of course, this is just a tax by another name.
They spent millions lobbying for this to go through
But London doesn't have the double wammy of tolls on bridges and tunnels
Wow, lot of drivers on EVG comment section. Big fan of Congestion Pricing as a bike commuter, pedestrian, and environmentalist!
Add tens of thousands of ride share vehicles, replace traffic lanes with bus only and bike lanes, add delivery zone parking, add citibike docking stations, then ask yourself why there is more congestion.
Question: are tolling cameras installed at the FDR Drive exits at 23rd St and Houston St? In other words, if somebody drives from the LES to 42nd Street (staying within the zone), but takes the FDR Dr home, they get hit with the toll?
You do know that adding more lanes of traffic has been proven to increase, not relieve, congestion, right?
DeBlasio was the best mayor we had
since Koch. DeBlasio worked for those
of us who are not rich. He kept our
rents down. I would love to see him
replace that woodchuck that we have as
governor who imposed this money grab
A couple or 2 friends would pay $11.60 for round trip subway to Manhattan and back. If they drove, it’s $0. If they drive, it cost $9…. What’s unfair about that.
Just to answer some comments above:
It’s a one way toll. Not Armageddon.
You get charged to enter the zone, not leave it.
It’s only $2.75 between 9pm-5am. (Cheaper than the train)
Motorcycles are heavily discounted
Uber riders pay a fee.
Low income households within the zone get a 100% tax credit for the toll.
Working class low income households outside the zone get a 50% discount sfter 10 trips per month.
This seems very fair. Looking forward to 12:01am Sunday :)
Apparently no. If you enter the zone on the FDR at 60th St there is a sensor that registers your car entering with no charge but then there is a second sensor somewhere further down the FDR and if you don’t pass it, they assume you’ve exited into the zone. Therefore, if you are already in the zone and use the FDR without leaving you can travel freely.
Now, now, don't get all reasonable on us.
Who knew there were so many people from upstate and NJ posting on EVGrieve?
Can't wait for cleaner air too much less less noise. There is so much more traffic since pre covid.
We have record high number of cars in CBD. And shocker--lowest recorded average speeds on streets. Do we need to cover the consequences/costs of this? People speak of the impact of tolls to the poor. What about buses stuck in traffic--wow, that's news, guess the poor don't ride buses. What about EMT's recent record slow response times? What about 250 people killed and 3000 people injured by cars every year? One thing is for certain: Every person moaning about the tolls has not ONE thing to say about any of these serious problems--just read their comments. Know why? Cause they don't care about nothing except their personal convenience. Well, know what? Guess I don't need care about your tolls.
This is such wonderful news.
A step in the right direction! If you have ever lived in a city that prioritizes people over cars then you know NYC still has a long way to go. But we are getting there. QoL already has markedly improved in lower Manhattan.
Above commenter thinking that most in NYC don’t drive or own cars that’s why they like this toll. As long if I’m not affected it’s ok. But it will effect you because delivery companies will pass the cost on to you and your grocery bill will reflect it. Just watch.
At long last! So happy it's finally happening
Well Environmentalist, do you think that Uber/ Lyft customers should pay full freight?
It’s funny, I have an uncle who is a man made of straw and he also supports my arguments with his behavior. It’s like he can’t help himself from showing how his ridiculous, obtuse, borderline cartoonish arguments actual prove the opposite of what he believes
I work near Fulton Street which the real estate industy has dubbed "FiDi". There were few vehicles, almost zero traffic. In fact, multiple streets had no lights.
Things started to change in 2009 when the Gehry luxury building went up.
Fast forward - and over the past 10 years, small buildings on narrow streets were torn down to make way for high-rise luxury buildings, hotels and Pace expansion. Various small schools (including special ed with students coming by bus) have opened up too.
Now lots of vehicles - Uber, ecommerce delivery, construction.
It isn't individual drivers commuting.
Luxury high-rises and hotels generate vehicles.
It is the wealthy in luxury high-rises using Uber and getting stuff delivered - that is what has generated vehicles in a place that had almost none. This is also evident in the huge increase in trash.
Yet folks are OK with unfettered luxury development, instant gratification ecommerce and delivery and Uber.
Sure - CP is fine for that carpenter or EMS worker who need to drive into the CP zone.
And sure, that casino will lessen congestion. LOL.
I am all for congestion tax but why are some of the most affluent areas (UES, UWS) not included
Yes! Let's wait and see whether there will be any significant price change before worrying needlessly about it. :)
The post includes the MTA link for a breakdown of toll prices. So if you have questions, check out the list for the facts, which is better than leaving comments like "I hear it will cost a family $500 to enter Manhattan in a car now. SMH."
"For every complex problem there is a simple solution, and it always the wrong one."....... Anyone who thinks throwing truck loads of money into the coffers of the MTA will improve safety, service, and cleanliness needs to get their head checked.
Damn. This comment thread is lit up like a Christmas tree. As a long term EV resident who doesn't drive, I am actually in favor of this. Perhaps the proceeds from congestion pricing can now be allocated towards much needed security cameras and fire extinguishers throughout our subway stations or even more of the implementation of the modernized trains which run on the C line. Just my two cents.
If the MTA doesn’t already have the cash for cameras and fire extinguishers then they are already doomed. I wouldn’t trust them with additional funding if they are that broke
Good. Maybe the city will have some money to fix the missing cameras at 15th St and Third Avenue, where I got hit with an e-scooter who ran the light, fell off his bike, scraped himself up, and then the feckless cop let him get away. I got $150 in med bills while he drove off smiling to his next delivery. BTW, I had the crossing light.
Really? NYC is the only US city with congestion pricing and Trump never had a chance of winning here.
If the fee is meant to reduce congestion why are they also charging during non-congestion hours?
Exciting changes for 2025!
People over cars? Cute slogan, but what do you think are IN those cars?
Only drivers oppose the tolls? Right. And everyone LOVED the dining sheds, except for a handful of motorists, yes?
Because it is a tax, disguised as an environmental solution.
na, auto correct was correct. He did win ugly. Very ugly
Because the developers want all us pesky residents of Chinatown & the LES gone
as we all know, safety, service, and cleanliness come free!
i live at 13th and A and have a car. used to be able to find ASP spots easily until the bike lanes came in, but i started parking at stuytown and that was an extra $300 (now $400) per month. don't really care about congestion pricing; 95% of the time i use my car its to visit family in NJ and come back late nite, so what is $3 more (the fact that PANYNJ isn't subsidizing MTA from their deep coffers and no one mentions this is amazing, but off-topic).
and so it is very convenient that my croman tenement lease is coming to an end soon. congestion pricing is yet another reminder that NY will "fairly" gouge the average resident every which way without materially improving life here before they ever implement a wealth tax, or punish landlords for vacant apartments, etc. if you think this is a good thing without considering that underpaid EMT workers don't even get an exemption, never mind all residents, you're a reminder of why i'm glad to be leaving this city; enjoy your uber eats deliveries, and feel free to never venture off this island, lest the "confines" of a vehicle offend your senses. this used to be a chill place, arguably the birthplace of the labor movement, but so much for solidarity when the most vocal supporters of congestion pricing don't even understand who actually has to pay these tolls, or think that the supposed discounts-via-red-tape are any sort of actual relief. death by a thousand cuts, as they say, and each of you CP fans (disturbing chuckle) are a blade each.
DeBlasio was the best mayor we had? Are you on drugs? He did nothing for the homeless, turned a blind eye to crime , vagrancy and used the office for his family's personal gain. He was the worst. What have you been smoking??
"Congestion pricing is yet another reminder that NY will "fairly" gouge the average resident every which way without materially improving life here before they ever implement a wealth tax, or punish landlords for vacant apartments, etc."
Well said. I've spoken with a number of friends and acquaintances that have not considered that CP will ultimately be primarily funded by:
1. The people that live here (via upcharges on deliveries, goods, services, etc.).
2. The people that have to come here and are reliant on personal vehicles to do so - service workers like cops/fire/EMT/healthcare, gig workers, delivery workers, blue collar techs that can't/won't gouge their clients with added fees the way larger scaled organizations will, etc.
All the while, the MTA and public transit in the city will continue to struggle with bloat, bureaucratic inefficiency, corruption, and crime - and they'll just now have a bigger source of budget to waste funded by Gov Roger Rabbit's regression-tax-disguised-as-a-feel-good-quality-of-life-and-environmentalism-initiative.
Fuck Hochul, fuck the MTA for their refusal to get their act together, fuck our leaders for not holding the MTA accountable, and fuck the corruption and bloat that continues to plague this once great city, growing somehow worse just about every year.
I don't own a car, but I support those who do and recognize the need for them in a city like this - that need won't go away, no matter how much the people in these comments that don't drive refuse to acknowledge that it's a need, and a reality that also impacts them (do they never get anything delivered or use a service or support a business that does?).
I've lived on 9th St. and Avenue D since 2009. My block has always had quite a bit of low level crime and quality of life issues that the NYPD does nothing about. It got a lot worse during COVID and has been on the downslide since.
My old man always said, "when you hate New York City more than you love it, you know it's time to leave." I have a rent stabilized lease, but at this point I plan to give it up once my next renewal comes, and move to NJ or PA.
This is the most expensive city to live in in America. The ineptitude of our leaders, and policies like CP, are a big part of why people like me will exit.
And get ready, because some drunken Santa Con bro will probably be paying 2-3x what my rent is right now to live over here on this shitty block by this time next year. Policies like CP are exactly why some longstanding residents that actually contribute to the local neighborhood economy and participate in the political process here will bail on this neighborhood, and the city writ large.
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