New York City’s congestion pricing reduces daily traffic by 82,000 vehicles

The MTA’s congestion pricing program continues to accomplish one of its primary goals: drastically reducing the number of vehicles that enter the busiest parts of Manhattan every day.

Data released by the transit agency last week estimates the tolls deterred an average of roughly 82,000 vehicles from entering Manhattan below 60th Street each day in March. That marks a 13% reduction from the 642,500 vehicles the MTA estimates would have entered the tolling area had congestion pricing not been implemented.

Transit officials said tolls are having a more noticeable impact on traffic each month, noting that in January — when the program first launched — the congestion zone saw an estimated 8% drop in vehicle entries.

“The data shows that the program is having its intended effect, reducing congestion by the amount projected, enabling New Yorkers to get where they need to go more quickly,” MTA Deputy Chief of Policy and External Relations Juliette Michaelson wrote in a statement.

As a whole, Michaelson said the tolling area saw approximately 2.5 million fewer vehicle entries during March compared to the same period in previous years..

While the number of vehicles entering the zone dropped last month compared to the historical average, it’s still up slightly from January. Transit officials attributed that to seasonal patterns, saying fewer people drive into Manhattan in the winter than the spring.

The money collected from congestion pricing, which charges a $9 base fare to enter the zone during daytime hours, is required by state law to finance $15 billion worth of mass transit repairs and upgrades.

The program — and the money that comes with it — continue to be threatened by the Trump administration, which insists the fees are a hardship on working class New Yorkers, despite overwhelming data and reporting that finds the vast majority of working class and poor New Yorkers use mass transit, and don’t drive into Manhattan.

President Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy have ordered the MTA to shut down the tolling program by April 20.

“The good news is that the data reflects what New Yorkers are seeing every day: congestion pricing is working as intended and should remain on, even in the face of misguided threats from the Federal Government,” Brian Fritsch, associate director of the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee to the MTA, wrote in an email.

The federal transportation department has threatened to withhold money from the MTA if the agency does not comply with its order. The feds haven’t specified exactly what money it will withhold, but the MTA is counting on $14 billion in federal funds for its next five-year construction plan.

In a message posted on X last month, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wrote, “Know that the billions of dollars the federal government sends to New York are not a blank check. Continued noncompliance will not be taken lightly.”

The MTA is currently suing the federal government to block its order, and briefings scheduled for the lawsuit are likely to delay any decision on congestion pricing’s future until at least October.

For now, vehicles continue to be charged, and the MTA reports it is on track to raise $500 million this year from the tolls.

https://gothamist.com/news/congestion-pricing-is-working-mta-says-tolls-keeping-82k-drivers-a-day-out-of-manhattan