Manhattan’s controversial congestion charge will overcome latest federal hurdle, costing drivers $17 to $23
The state’s top congestion charge in New York City received federal approval on Monday, meaning that for the next year, anyone who wants to drive in lower Manhattan will pay $23.
The Federal Highway Administration officially gave the plan an unprecedented nod on Monday, meaning that it now has as much to do with New York City’s transit workers as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority — making the final choices about tolls, cuts, hours and exemptions.
The plan, unveiled in August, would have required cars to pay $23 to enter the kingdom south of Sixtieth Street during peak hours of the day.
Off-peak charges may be $17.
All areas south of Central Park have a single admission price of $23 for all drivers
Potential congestion pricing is expected to cost the MTA, which runs the city’s public transit system, $1 billion a year.
The scheme, which was first proposed in 2007 but went into earnest in 2019, will begin in the spring of 2024 and is expected to see the MTA spend $1 billion on public transit.
“Congestion pricing will reduce traffic in our vibrant downtown area, improve air quality and provide the MTA with critical resources,” New York Governor Cathy Hochula said.
“With the federal government’s green light, we look forward to moving forward with this program.”
Last month tThe Biden administration authorized the final environmental assessment.
The toll can be used to increase congestion pricing in line with current bridge and tunnel tolls, ie the price of a car trip from areas like Princeton, New Jerseycan go as high as $120.
Activists calling for the introduction of congestion charges will be visible on April 21
In March 2018, there is a congestion charge rally
New York City announced that by mid-2024 drivers could face visitor congestion that will cost as much as $23 a day
Mayor Eric Adams and City Controller Brad Landers welcomed the announcement
The review found that the price was projected to reduce the number of vehicles entering Manhattan by 15 to 20 units over the past year.
Other major international cities resembling Singapore and London already have congestion pricing insurance policies in place to reduce visitor numbers, increase the number of vital service providers and reduce air pollution.
In New York, the city wants to levy a daily variable toll on cars entering or staying in the central business district, which stretches between Sixtieth Street in midtown Manhattan and Battery Park in Manhattan’s South End.
New York, which has perhaps the worst visitor congestion in the US, will turn into the main US metropolis to observe London, which introduced an identical tax in 2003.
MTA officials have said they’ll want virtually a year to put in place brand new tolling infrastructure once the feds allow it, and it will be watched to meet its current goal of starting congestion charging in the second quarter of 2024.
