By Hank Russell
Much to the chagrin of some Republican state legislators, Governor Kathy Hochul said that she will reintroduce the congestion pricing program, starting in January 2025. Although the proposed amount has been reduced to $9 from the original $15, her opponents argue that she timed the proposal by waiting until after the election to announce a new tax on New Yorkers.
As previously reported in Long Island Life & Politics, the congestion pricing program — also known as Central Business District Tolling — was set to go into effect on June 30. Under the program, all vehicles traveling below 60th Street in Manhattan from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday (9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends) would pay $15. This also applied to motorcyclists, taxi and ride-share drivers, daily commuters and first responders.
However, Hochul held a press conference on June 5 announcing that she would temporarily pause the congestion pricing program, after facing criticism and legal action from local elected officials and municipalities. LILP also reported that the Town of Hempstead sued the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) to prevent the program from being implemented.
By reducing the fee to $9, Hochul said that commuters would save $1,500 annually to go into the city’s Central Business District. As I said from the start, a $15 toll was just too high in this economic climate,” Hochul said. “By getting congestion pricing underway and fully supporting the MTA capital plan, we’ll unclog our streets, reduce pollution and deliver better public transit for millions of New Yorkers.”
But some GOP elected officials accused Hochul of reintroducing the program in an underhanded way. “The timing of Governor Hochul’s decision to bring back congestion pricing at a reduced rate does not go unnoticed by New Yorkers,” said state Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square). “Her $9 toll proposal is a clear indication that her ‘pause’ was nothing more than a political maneuver. Now that election season is over, she’s free to push forward with a deeply unpopular policy many New Yorkers have opposed since its inception.”
Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay (R,C,I-Pulaski) recalled when Hochul was not in favor of congestion pricing and quoted her as saying that the decision to table the plan was “about standing up for the hardworking men and women who get up every single day, do their jobs and want a fair shake.”
“Unfortunately for those hardworking men and women, the governor’s disingenuous performance as a champion for affordability lasted fewer than six months,” Barclay said.
Ra said he has “repeatedly” called for public hearings regarding the MTA’s finances and governance, but that has fallen on deaf ears. “Instead of being transparent and engaging with the public, the governor continues to make decisions behind closed doors when it comes to North America’s largest public transit authority,” he said. “Without that level of scrutiny, this plan serves the interests of bureaucrats — not commuters.”
LILP has reached out to the MTA and was referred to the governor’s office. LILP contacted Hochul’s office for comment, but has yet to hear back.
Barclay said Hochul waited until after Election Day to bring back Central Business District Tolling and that she only delayed the program’s rollout so that Democrats would not have to face the issue during this year’s election. Additionally, with the return of Donald Trump to the White House, it could “threaten the possibility of” the program’s implementation.
“Those political realities are behind today’s announcement and what has driven New York Democrats to dig deeper into the pockets of already overburdened families and businesses,” Barclay said. “It’s undeniable that President Trump’s landslide victory was fueled largely by Americans’ persistent frustration about high prices, cost of living and inflation. Apparently, Governor Hochul wasn’t listening. Under Democratic rule in New York, the affordability crisis has been especially damaging. Today, Governor Hochul and her allies have made sure it’s here to stay.”