The Manhattan congestion pricing toll remains undecided following the third meeting of the Traffic Mobility Review Board on Monday, but the panel discussed various tolling scenarios and exemptions. 

What You Need To Know

  • The members of the Traffic Mobility Review Board will recommend to MTA board members a toll price and any exemptions for the upcoming Manhattan congestion pricing fee

  • The toll price could range from $9 to $23 during peak weekday travel times

  • The MTA plans to have congestion pricing live by the end of April 2024

The board, made up of six people representing diverse civic leadership, considered the following: 

  • Possible credits ranging from $4 to $7 for drivers entering Manhattan’s Central Business District below 60th Street via the city's four tunnels, depending on the entry point. 
  • A tiered approach to tolling for-hire vehicles with green taxi cabs and black cars facing charges between $1 and $1.50 and app-based drivers seeing rates between $1.50 and $2. 
  • The possibility of a 50% nighttime discount for vehicles, a 25% discount during the hours of 8 p.m. to 10 a.m. or a 25% discount between 5 a.m. to 6 a.m.
  • Increasing low-income discounts from the mandated 25% to 50% after the first 10 trips. 
  • Exemptions for commuter buses and specialized government vehicles.

Chairman Carl Weisbrod emphasized the board's dual objectives of keeping “our toll for everybody as low as we possibly can, on the one hand, and on the other hand, try to even out – to some extent – what choices people make between free routes and paid routes." 

He noted the panel is also working toward a goal of only charging drivers to enter the Central Business District, not to exit.

Congestion Pricing in NYC

In a bid to manage traffic more effectively, the board also proposed imposing double toll rates on box trucks and triple rates on larger trucks, noting that larger vehicles should be paying for as much as the congestion that they are causing. 

In a statement, the Trucking Association of New York said they are "extremely disappointed that the Traffic Mobility Review Board is planning to recommend trucks pay significantly higher congestion tolls than other vehicles because they 'take up more space.'"

"This ridiculous justification completely disregards the alleged intent of congestion pricing, which is to encourage people not to drive in the congestion zone," the statement added. "Trucks have no other options. They deliver everything from milk to medical supplies. New York cannot function without trucks, yet the TMRB is going to make it even more difficult to operate."

Congestion pricing is set to be implemented in Manhattan in April 2024. The Traffic Mobility Review Board will submit all recommendations, including a toll price, to the MTA Board for final approval.