Civil servants such as NYPD officers, firefighters and teachers are on the hook for congestion pricing’s $15 base fare just like all other drivers, a key MTA report obtained by Gothamist reveals.
The report prepared by the Traffic Mobility Review Board will be detailed at a press conference Thursday morning. The TMRB is tasked with recommending the toll structure to the MTA board.
The report shows that none of the 122 groups who requested exemptions – including civil servants who drive private vehicles to work – got a waiver from the tolls to enter the so-called Central Business District. The recommended base fare for drivers entering the tolling zone south of 60th Street in Manhattan is $15 between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends.
“The TMRB has been guided by its goal of keeping overall toll rates low by limiting the number of discounts and exemptions,” the report noted. “Indeed, every discount or exemption for the few increases the toll rates for the many. In addition, discounts reduce – and exemptions eliminate – the incentive for drivers to change their travel patterns and avoid adding congestion to the [Central Business District].”
Mayor Eric Adams described the proposed $15 toll as “the beginning of the conversation” at a press conference Thursday morning. He said he saw a distinction between people “driving into the city for luxury purposes” and people driving into the city for medical treatment.
“We don’t want to overburden working class New Yorkers,” he said. “But those who are just driving for convenience, whatever the price is, they need to pay that price.”
The report does not indicate an exemption for those driving to medical appointments.
The report shows that drivers entering the congestion pricing zone via the Manhattan tunnels do get some toll credits.
Drivers who enter the zone via the Holland, Lincoln, Brooklyn-Battery or Queens-Midtown tunnels will get a $5 credit toward the congestion charge. Those drivers already pay up to $14.75 to use the tunnels.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who has filed a lawsuit seeking to block implementation of congestion pricing, wasn’t satisfied.
“As advertised, New York is officially sticking it to Jersey families with their commuter-crushing Congestion Tax. On top of the existing tolls, it’ll be 15 bucks every day to go into the city with no discounts at the GW Bridge — thousands of dollars a year just to drive to work. If it wasn’t costly enough, the Congestion Tax will also increase toxic, cancer-causing pollution in Jersey,” Murphy said in a statement.
Other types of vehicles that enter the Central Business District, such as motorcycles, will get a $2.50 credit if entering via one of the Manhattan tunnels. Small trucks and charter buses would get $12 knocked off their $24 congestion pricing fee. Intercity buses, tour buses and large trucks would get $20 off their $36 congestion toll.
The 2019 state legislation that allowed the MTA to implement congestion pricing does require some exemptions.
Vehicles that transport people with disabilities and ambulances don’t have to pay the toll. Garbage trucks, NYPD vehicles and fire trucks are also exempt.
People who live in the toll zone and earn less than $60,000 a year would get a tax credit equivalent to the cost of the tolls they paid.
The recommended tolling scheme also expands on the federal government’s request to give discounts to low income drivers who commute into the zone. The plan recommends those drivers get a 50% discount after the first 10 trips in one month.
The MTA board is expected to discuss the recommendations on Wednesday.
Ramsey Khalifeh contributed reporting.
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