MTA offers toll tweaks, promises new discounts for congestion pricing

Late-night drivers motoring through parts of Manhattan will get big discounts on congestion pricing tolls under an MTA plan that aims to reduce traffic jams in the Big Apple, according to officials.

Drivers hitting the road below 60th street between the hours of midnight and 4 a.m. will receive at least a 50% discount on a toll that’s likely to cost between $9 and $23, according to MTA officials.

The discounted congestion fees aim to incentivize motorists to avoid peak traffic times, the MTA said Thursday.

Under the plan, lower-income commuters — making $50,000 annually, or otherwise eligible for government aid — will get a 25 percent discount on peak and off-peak tolls after making 10 trips to the zone.

Taxis and other for-hire vehicles will also only be charged once per day, no matter how many times they enter the area.

Officials are also considering letting drivers enter the congestion zone for free between midnight and 6 a.m. to reduce truck traffic on the Cross-Bronx Expressway.

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Agency officials revealed the discounts as part of a $200 million package of toll discounts, infrastructure upgrades and health programs to compensate neighborhoods and industries hit by the state’s controversial congestion toll pricing.

The MTA made the pledge to federal regulators in an effort to win preliminary approval for the pricing program as opponents renewed their efforts to sink it.

“New Yorkers want to know ‘what does this mean?’ And the answer is: less congestion, better air quality, safer streets and better transit,” said MTA chairman and CEO Janno Lieber at a pro-congestion pricing rally in Manhattan on Friday. “That’s what congestion pricing is going to deliver.” 

Experts say the program will make a dent in Manhattan’s perpetual traffic jams by cutting the number of cars heading into the business district by as much as 20 percent.

But critics, including seven council members, have pressured Gov. Kathy Hochul to abandon the toll, claiming its merely a cash grab from commuters.

“The truth is, there was never any real justification for moving forward with the Central Business Tolling Program other than generating more revenue for the MTA,” said a letter, signed by the group, which is led by Council Minority Leader Joe Borelli (R-Staten Island).

The revised program aims in part to address some of the criticism levied against congestion pricing, which would charge drivers tolls heading into Manhattan south of 60th Street.

Toll amounts have yet to be set but the MTA  is  eying charging passenger vehicles between $9-$23 to enter the zone at peak times, while trucks could face a charge of up to $85 depending on their size.

Vehicles passing through Manhattan on the West Side Highway or the FDR would be exempted.

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Experts also say the program will make a dent in Manhattan’s perpetual traffic jams by cutting the number of cars heading into the business district by as much as 20 percent.

Critics, including seven council members, have continued to press Gov. Kathy Hochul to abandon the toll, charging that it is a cash grab from commuters — including holding a press conference near City Hall on Thursday.

“The truth is, there was never any real justification for moving forward with the Central Business Tolling Program other than generating more revenue for the MTA,” said a letter, signed by the group, which is led by Council Minority Leader Joe Borelli (R-Staten Island).

This revised program offers a number of concessions aimed at answering some of the criticism levied against congestion pricing, which would toll cars and trucks driving south of 60th Street into Manhattan.

Toll amounts have yet to be set but the MTA has indicated in filings that it is eyeing charging passenger vehicles between $9-$23 to enter the zone at peak times, while trucks could face a charge of up to $85 depending on their size.

The off-peak and late night tolls would be less expensive. And vehicles passing through Manhattan on the West Side Highway or the FDR would be exempted.

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The agency had been under fire after its environmental reviews showed that the congestion program could put hundreds of extra trucks on freeways in the borough.

The MTA also promised to contribute $15 million to the city’s program to upgrade the ancient and dirty diesel-powered refrigerated containers at the Hunts Point Market in the South Bronx, the main distribution point for much of the city’s supply of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Cleaning up Hunts Point, the MTA said, will help offset any additional pollution from new truck traffic diverting from Manhattan to The Bronx to avoid the fee.

The agency had been under fire after its environmental reviews showed that the congestion program could put hundreds of extra trucks on freeways in the borough, which suffers from high rates of asthma, even as it slashed traffic in Manhattan.

The MTA studied at least one option that could have charged the for-hire car business for every trip below 60th Street, leading to fierce pushback from the Taxi and Limousine Commission and ride-hail companies.

However, at least one of the companies continued to push back on that, calling the proposal unworkable.

“The MTA’s solution for rideshare would be an infeasible logistical nightmare,” said a representative for Lyft.