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Congestion pricing has been one of the most hotly contested topics in the New York City news circuit this year, and the debate on whether the controversial policy will be good or bad for New Yorkers feels like it'll continue to dominate our conversations in the foreseeable future.
Now, the debate will heat up a few degrees: the MTA just announced that congestion pricing fees will go up to $15 from the currently established $9 in 2031.
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Earlier this year, Governor Kathy Hochul declared an indefinite pause on the plan... until last week, when she gave the MTA the go-ahead to start implementing the toll on all drivers who enter Manhattan south of 60th Street unless they stay on FDR Drive, the West Side Highway or the Battery Park Underpass, as explained by Gothamist. The congestion pricing fee, officially set at $9, will officially go into effect on January 5, 2025.
Believe it or not, that's a significant reduction from the pre-established $15 toll, a change that Governor Hochul attributed to the high cost of living.
"As I said from the start, a $15 toll was just too high in this economic climate. That’s why our plan cuts the daytime toll to $9 for cars," she said in a statement. "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."
The re-implementation of congestion pricing arrived just a week after Donald Trump, who is a vocal opponent of the plan, was elected. The timing was not casual: it will be harder for the incoming administration to completely shut down the new guidelines if implemented before the change in President.
As of now, the MTA is expected to raise the fee to $12 in 2028 and to $15 a few years later, in 2031.
So how much will drivers end up paying, exactly? It depends on what time you're driving and whether or not you have an E-ZPass. If you're traveling during the MTA's peak hours with an E-ZPass—5am to 9pm on Mondays through Fridays and 9am to 9pm on Saturdays and Sundays—you'll pay $9 to enter the section of town. If you're traveling overnight, the toll will "just" be $2.25. If you don't have an E-ZPass, on the other hand, you'll have to pay $13.50 during peak hours and $3.30 overnight.
The moral of the story is that we should all get an E-ZPass if driving around Manhattan.