Current:Home > NewsNYC congestion pricing plan passes final vote, will bring $15 tolls for some drivers -AssetLink
NYC congestion pricing plan passes final vote, will bring $15 tolls for some drivers
View
Date:2025-04-26 12:26:54
NEW YORK -- The Metropolitan Transportation Authority board on Wednesday approved congestion pricing fees in what its chairman said is "one of the most significant votes" the board has ever undertaken.
Emotions ran high at the board meeting. A mix of people pleaded for mercy in the form of exemptions and lower fees, while others said after years of fighting the time had finally come to enact the controversial plan.
After the five-year debate and approval process, which sometimes moved with fits and starts, the MTA board approved the tolls drivers will pay to enter Manhattan's Central Business District below 60th Street.
The fee structure is as follows:
- Cars will pay $15 to enter Manhattan at 61st Street and below during the day, and $3.75 at night
- Motorcycles will pay $7.50 during the day and $1.75 at night
- Trucks will pay between $24-36 during the day and $6-9 at night
- Taxi drivers will see a $1.25 surcharge per ride, while Uber and Lyft drivers will pay $2.50
Several groups of drivers will be exempt, the majority of which are government workers.
Those exemptions will be made for any bus company with a Department of Education contract, including public, private and charter school buses. About half of the city's fleet of 26,000 vehicles are also exempt, and private commuter buses. However, public employees who drive private cars to work, like first responders and teachers, have been left off the exemption list.
- What to know: How NYC congestion pricing could impact you after passing today's vote
"Getting something big done is difficult," MTA CEO Janno Lieber said.
It was difficult right up until the very end. MTA police barricades ringed the building. The place was crawling with cops. But even with all the precautions, two sets of demonstrators got inside the board room.
Just before the final vote, yellow cab drivers, who don't want their passengers to pay an extra $1.25 congestion fee, confronted the board, saying, "Exempt the yellow cabs now."
But with the MTA desperate for the $1 billion per year congestion pricing will bring in for fixing the ailing transit system, the vote was overwhelmingly in favor.
Long Island board member David Mack was the most vocal naysayer.
"My concern is a vibrant city coming out of COVID, the vacancy rate of office buildings, the major companies leaving New York and going south," Mack said.
Congestion pricing was signed into law by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who recently did an about face, saying now isn't the time to make it more difficult for drivers coming to New York City. Board member Norman Brown voted in favor, with a parting shot at Cuomo.
"I wanted to thank, actually, ex-Gov. Cuomo at some point for pushing this through, but in the short term his support has gone the other way. But I'm hoping in five years from now Andrew Cuomo is bragging, 'I put this thing in. I drove a stake into congestion in Midtown, Manhattan,'" Brown said.
MTA officials hope to implement the plan in June and say most of the infrastructure has already been installed, but the rollout could be delayed because of several ongoing lawsuits. Hearings are scheduled for April 3 and 4 in New Jersey, followed by a hearing in Manhattan Federal Court on May 17.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy made it clear he's still hoping to put the kibosh on it.
"This is far from over and we will continue to fight this blatant cash grab. The MTA's actions today are further proof that they are determined to violate the law in order to balance their budget on the backs of New Jersey commuters," Murphy said.
Late Wednesday, there was another problem. Rockland County Executive Ed Day filed suit to stop the plan. His appointee to the board had argued that while the MTA has grand plans for improving the system with the congestion cash, there is nothing for Rockland County.
- In:
- Congestion Pricing
- Manhattan
- Metropolitan Transportation Authority
- MTA
- Janno Lieber
Marcia Kramer joined CBS2 in 1990 as an investigative and political reporter. Prior to CBS2, she was the City Hall bureau chief at the New York Daily News.
Twitter FacebookveryGood! (74712)
Related
- North Carolina trustees approve Bill Belichick’s deal ahead of introductory news conference
- Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in New York hush-money criminal case
- Settlement reached in lawsuit between Disney and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ allies
- Burger King, Pizza Hut, Applebee's and Sonic serving up eclipse deals and specials
- Charges: D'Vontaye Mitchell died after being held down for about 9 minutes
- Trader Joe’s upped the price of its bananas for the first time in decades. Here’s why
- NFL's rush to implement new kickoff rules is Roger Goodell's latest winning power play
- Christina Ricci Reveals Why She Didn't Initially Bond With Daughter Cleopatra
- How to watch new prequel series 'Dexter: Original Sin': Premiere date, cast, streaming
- What is the 'Mob Wives' trend? Renee Graziano, more weigh in on TikTok's newest aesthetic
Ranking
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- Vanderpump Rules' Tom Schwartz Reacts to Ex Katie Maloney Hooking Up With His Best Friend
- Man in custody after fatal shooting of NYPD officer during traffic stop: Reports
- Former state Controller Betty Yee announces campaign for California governor
- US auto safety agency seeks information from Tesla on fatal Cybertruck crash and fire in Texas
- A faster spinning Earth may cause timekeepers to subtract a second from world clocks
- GirlsDoPorn owner goes from FBI's Most Wanted List to San Diego court appearance
- Families of 5 men killed by Minnesota police reach settlement with state crime bureau
Recommendation
Taylor Swift Cancels Austria Concerts After Confirmation of Planned Terrorist Attack
This trans man transitioned, detransitioned then transitioned again. What he wants you to know.
Donald Sutherland writes of a long life in film in his upcoming memoir, ‘Made Up, But Still True’
US military drains fuel from tank facility that leaked fuel into Pearl Harbor’s drinking water
Connie Chiume, Black Panther Actress, Dead at 72: Lupita Nyong'o and More Pay Tribute
34 Container Store Items That Will Organize Your Kitchen
'Truth vs. Alex Jones': Documentary seeks justice for outrageous claims of Sandy Hook hoax
Doorbell video shows mom fighting off man who snatched teen from her apartment door in NYC