Trump Admin Pulls Approval of New York City’s Congestion Pricing
The congestion zone affects Manhattan neighborhoods below 60th streets, which contain all the hot tourist spots.
The New York Post learned that President Donald Trump’s administration plans to withdraw approval of New York City’s unpopular congestion pricing scheme in Manhattan.
The congestion toll affects travelers below 60th Street, which contains the hot spots in Manhattan during peak hours: 5 AM—9 PM on weekdays and 9 AM—9 PM on weekends.
Cars pay the $9 during peak hours. Others:
- Large trucks – $21.60
- Small trucks – $14.40
- Motorcycles – $4.50
Motorists pay $2.25 during off-peak hours.
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy will alert New York Gov. Kathy Hochul of the department’s Federal Highway Administration’s decision later today:
“New York State’s congestion pricing plan is a slap in the face to working class Americans and small business owners,” said Duffy, noting that commuters entering NYC have already financed the construction and improvement of city roadways through their taxes.
“But now the toll program leaves drivers without any free highway alternative, and instead, takes more money from working people to pay for a transit system and not highways. It’s backwards and unfair,” he said, blasting the program as harmful to small businesses in the Big Apple that depend on customers from New Jersey and Connecticut.
The department will officially rescind the Nov. 21 agreement signed under the Value Pricing Pilot Program (VPPP) that imposed a stiff $9 surcharge for drivers entering Manhattan below 60th Street starting in January.
“Every American should be able to access New York City regardless of their economic means. It shouldn’t be reserved for an elite few.”
Here is a map of the affected area in Manhattan. My friend highlighted the most popular area, which is just below Central Park and above the Flatiron District. It contains top tourist spots like Times Square:
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Comments
Can you say federal government overreach?
Congestion pricing is stupid but it’s their monkey.
The problem here is Uncle Sugar funding everything that should 100% be funded at the local and state level. That is what leads to expensive boondoggles like the CA high speed train, Alaska’s bridge to nowhere and Boston’s big dig. It also leads to the Feds have a finger in every pie with a corresponding increase in numbers of Fed employees.
As you state Uncle Sugar IS involved in funding for surface transportation so it ISN’T their monkey it is partially owned by all of us.
It is a legitimate argument to say you accept the money – you accept the oversight. However the money should never have been provided in the first place.
The same can be said for building schools, town halls, fire stations and everything else. My town has been rebuilding everything using the arguments that the fed pay for half or more of it.
I’m tired of attempts to bribe me with my own money.
Agreed, 100%. Let’s revoke the Federal fuel taxes and end ALL Federal funding for Transportation support for roads, bridges, busses, subways, trolleys and trains.
The States can then increase their fuel tax, increase user fees on a per vehicle basis to include EV and Bikes in the fun of paying on an equivalent basis to ICE vehicles, create tolls or whatever else they choose to fund the transportation systems of their State, County and Metropolitan area.
I think the feds should have butted out. Let the idiot democrats enact a detested tax and piss off their voters.
If it involves federal funds, part of which were stolen from my income, I don’t want to Finance one cent of it. I don’t care what they do with their own money, but when they start playing with money that was stolen from me I start having a problem with it
Now get rid of ALL Toll roads
So long as a toll road has an alternative what’s the issue? They are more convenient, faster than the existing alternative. Just like the corner Gas/Convenience Store might have a small grocery section and the prices are higher than a grocery store b/c you are paying for the convenience of a quick trip v longer investment in time, fue, engine and tire wear to drive to the grocery store.
I’ll tell you the issue. The Mass Pike is a toll road. The tolls were supposed to go down after it was paid off. It has been paid off at least twice. Have the tolls been taken down? No! Instead the pike has been rebranded to pay for the big dig. Worse than that most of the traffic on the Pike doesn’t use the big dig and the traffic elsewhere that does isn’t subject to any tolls.
That should be rebonded and not rebranded.
Mass. is a complex cesspool of corruption. There is no part of the state or local government that is not corrupt. WRT to the Mass Pike, the plan was to have tolls pay for it. That was not working well, so the “temporary sales tax” of 2.5% was put in place to pay for the Pike. That as 1962. Toll rates have been raised repeatedly, and the sales tax rate is now over 5%. In the early 1980s, as special “bridges and roads” 2.5 cent gas tax was added. After 63 years of funding, the Mass Pike is not paid for. The bridges look like crap and are in worse shape than when the special tax went in 40 years ago.
I have personally exposed systematic corruption in the Mass. Dept. of Revenue, the IRS for the state.
We still own a house in the state, in Andover. Very strong corruption with the interaction of the new MBTA zoning and the “green belt” (AVIS). Any lawyer out there in need of a small, inexpensive house that could be used to litigate and kill a variety of laws?
Well stated. MA is essentially one party rule although they occasionally elect a Republican governor. This is what happens when there is very little pushback,
Also the Mass Pike is one of those unaccountable agencies where the connected in MA dump their idiot relatives so they can receive a good wage they otherwise would never be able to obtain. Of course that gravy train is disappearing because of automation.
The Pike also use to spend all their allocated funds by the end of the year so they always looked like they needed more money. A typical use it or lose bureaucratic technique, They used it to repave roads that didn’t need it tying up traffic at inopportune times.
The state of Virginia had a similar issue a few decades back with the Petersburg Turnpike — the section of I-95 from Richmond south through Petersburg and into I-85. It was a toll road, and over the years the people paid, and paid, and paid. It was clear that the bonds were paid off, but the turnpike commission always found a reason to keep the tolls going. Finally in 1992 the General Assembly, under considerable political pressure, removed the tolls (parallel tools on I-195 and I-895 remain, and there’s the whole northern Viriginia idiocies on I-95).
The point: Massachusetts can remove the tolls on the Pike whenever it likes. You just need a state legislature and a governor with spines.
We do not not have a governor nor legislature with spines (but likely with scales). Nor are we likely to for a long long time. This is why we say everything is illegal and/or taxed in Massachusetts.
There is no toll on I 95 in VA or other roads that I’m aware of. There is a charge for using a different “express” lane, though.
Same thing happened with the Crescent City Connection’s second bridge. Was only supposed to have tolls to cross until the matter was paid off. Then, the tolls continued WELL past the payoff date and were only successfully removed a little over a decade ago.
If it was rebonded, then there had to be a vote, right? So, that’s what the people of PA want.
So the voters of the State and/or the State.Legislature decided to deviate from the original plan? One way or the other that’s what happened for the original bonds to be paid off and new bonds issued off the toll revenue.
Reneging on the original deal they made when they sold the idea to the public isn’t a.toll road.issue, that’s a problem of bad governance.
Similar story with the toll roads in Chicago if I recall.
Indiana sold their turnpike to a French company to run.
Tale of the Dallas-Forth Worth Turnpike.
Back in the 1950s a toll road was built between Dallas and Fort Worth Texas. In the legislation that released the bonds to build it, the Turnpike was to be turned into a no-toll road when the bonds were paid off. In late 1977 when the bonds were paid and the Turnpike Authority was to open up the road, the Authority refused and kept the toll booths still charging people to use the road though it was now under State maintenance. In the first week of 1978, the Texas Department of Transportation came in the middle of the night and closed down all of the toll booths removing any barriers. The foundations of the toll booths were still there as late as 10 or 15 years ago.
Patiently waiting for the “Roads are gonna die!” hysterics from the lefties.
And, “RACISM!!!!!!”
Don’t you know roads are racist now because of where they are built.
Allegedly, Robert Moses designed the bridges in New York City so black peoples’ buses couldn’t fit under them but white peoples’ buses could.
So what did YOU think it was that killed the Afro do?
Why does the federal gov’t have any say over this? It really shouldn’t.
What’s the movie screen capture about “Then let them die!”?
As CommoChief said in reply to the first comment, New York City is using Federal money for some of the surface transportation through the area. How loud would the screams be if that money was withdrawn?
Can we end the Federal fuel taxes and stop sending Federal $ to States, Counties and Municipalities for surface transportation? If so then sign us up. NY can do whatever the hell they want so long as the voters in NY let them do it. Of course then each State County and Municipality would need to pay for all the roads, bridges, tunnels, subways, AMTRAK, bike lanes and other transportation projects themselves.
Somehow I doubt the Congressional delegations of the ACELA corridor and the Metros with subways, trolleys, extensive bike lanes and tunnel projects would be willing to forgo Federal cash that help supports those things and put 100% of the costs on their constituents.
I mean, Kirk said that because the Klingons had been fighting him for years and killed his son. I don’t think that travelers from other states to NYC evoke the same level of hatred.
Next job: Revoke the approval of CA’s independent automotive regulations. My state WA is one of the ones that blindly accepts whatever CA decides.
I live on the other side of the country from CA, yet we’ve hitched ourselves to California’s 2035 EV mandate. Fortunately my neighboring state hasn’t done such a thing so looks like I’m going to buy cars over the border because I can’t make an EV work for my lifestyle.
One result of that mandate is that Jeep is only shipping PHEV Wranglers and Grand Cherokees to dealers in my state unless specially ordered. If I want to buy a lot model, the hybrids start at something like $55k before options. Good for the dealer, I guess. If I wanted a different engine because I don’t want to haul around a 500lb battery that I can’t plug in I’d have to order it and wait. All because California said so.