The first-in-the-nation congestion pricing initiative is set to restart in early January after a months-long pause. Gov. Hochul announced on Thursday the new toll will have a reduced price of $9. But even with the lower fare, many are still vowing to fight it. NBC New York’s Andrew Siff and Adam Harding report.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the return of congestion pricing to New York City under a new lower toll cost.
Starting on Jan. 5, all cars entering Manhattan at 60th Street and below will have to pay $9, a $6 reduction from the previous toll pricing.
The plan still needs to be approved by the MTA board and received federal approval before drivers are charged to enter the Congestion Relief Zone. In June, the MTA paused the congestion pricing plan at the direction of Hochul due to concerns the plan could cause "unintended consequences" to the city's post-pandemic recovery.
"You heard that correctly. It was $15 dollars before and now its $9 dollars. That is a 40% reduction," Hochul said as she boasted that the new price will still help the MTA achieve its goal of raising $15 billion to fund service improvements and reduce congestion.
Daily charges for drivers are going from $15 to $9. That 40% decrease saves an average daily commuter $1,500/year.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) November 14, 2024
Lower-income New Yorkers will see even more savings: A 50% discount after the 10th toll of the month.
If it's after 9:00pm, the toll will be reduced further.
Who can get discounts?
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While the 40% reduction will be applied to all drivers entering Manhattan, Hochul said some groups will not have to pay the full toll.
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Low-income drivers who earn less than $50,000 will get a 15% discount after their first ten trips in a month. Under the previous $15 plan, low-income drivers could apply to pay half the price on the daytime toll after their 10th trip to the city.
With the 15% discount, low-income drivers would pay $7.65 after paying 10 regular tolls.
In addition, the governor also said the toll would be "discounted even further" after 9 p.m. to encourage night deliveries. There was no indication of how much the discount would be or the hours in which the night-time discount would apply.
It is not immediately clear if specialized government vehicles and emergency vehicles would be exempted from the toll as they were under the previous proposal.
Under the original toll structure, taxis and for-hire vehicles licensed with the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission were eligible for a "per-trip charge."
