Prefer it or not, congestion pricing has arrived — however not with out questions from drivers.
Whereas the MTA has tried to deal with many considerations each within the leadup to and after the plan went into impact, drivers nonetheless haven’t been fully certain of all the principles relating to who’s charged, once they get charged, what number of instances they are often charged every day, and extra.
Here’s a breakdown of what the modifications imply for drivers:
Who might be charged?
Nearly all drivers of most automobiles, SUVs, small vans and pickup vans.
Who’s exempt?
Sure emergency automobiles, faculty buses, folks with disabilities who can’t take public transportation, and the individuals who transport them are all exempt. Low-income drivers who pay the toll 10 instances in a month can apply for a 50% low cost on journeys they take the remainder of the month.
There’s additionally slightly break for individuals who have already paid a toll to enter Manhattan on the Lincoln Tunnel, Holland Tunnel, Queens-Midtown Tunnel or Hugh L. Carey Tunnel throughout peak hours. They need to see a credit score on their E-ZPass of as much as $3 for passenger automobiles and extra for vans and buses.
Nonetheless, with tolls for bridges and tunnels from New Jersey set to go up within the new yr, a driver coming through the Holland Tunnel throughout peak site visitors may pay $22 even with the credit score.
How a lot is the toll?
The fee to drivers will depend on what time of the day it’s and if drivers have an E-ZPass, an digital toll assortment system that’s utilized in many states.
Throughout peak site visitors hours, drivers with an E-ZPass might be charged $9, as soon as per day. For off-peak hours, the tolls go right down to $2.25.
Peak site visitors hours might be from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays, and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends.
Drivers with out an E-ZPass will obtain payments by mail and pay extra: $13.50 for peak hours and $3.30 off-peak.
Motorcyclists can pay half the quantity that automobiles pay throughout peak. Drivers of buses and vans, relying on their measurement, can pay extra.
What number of instances can I be charged every day?
For many drivers, they are going to solely be charged as soon as per day.
In response to the MTA, any frequent automobile — together with sedans, SUVs, station wagons — will solely be charged as soon as. Pickup vans with manufacturing unit beds, or with caps which are under the roofline and don’t lengthen over the perimeters, fall underneath that very same class. It additionally applies to hearses, limos and vans with out an prolonged roof above the windshield.
The next might be charged each time they enter, regardless of whether it is on the identical day:
Pickup vans with modified beds
Pickup vans with caps that go above the roofline or lengthen over the perimeters of the mattress
Vans which have been modified behind the driving force’s cab
Multi-unit vans, together with articulated vans the place an influence unit is carrying a number of trailers
When do drivers get charged?
The toll is charged when drivers enter the Congestion Reduction Zone, under 61st Avenue in Manhattan. There is no such thing as a cost for leaving the zone.
There aren’t any further tolls for driving round inside the Congestion Reduction Zone, regardless of if it’s the similar day or another day after that. Drivers will solely be charged upon re-entering the world after they go away, assuming it happens on a unique day of once they entered the zone.
Will drivers utilizing the West Facet Freeway or FDR Drive be charged?
Drivers will not be charged for utilizing the West Facet Freeway or FDR Drive solely, nevertheless it will depend on the place the driving force is heading.
Any driver heading straight by on the West Facet Freeway to the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel, or vice-versa, won’t face a toll. Drivers staying on FDR Drive will even not need to pay, assuming they keep on the freeway and don’t enter Manhattan’s avenue grid at any level.
Different drivers utilizing the Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge and Williamsburg Bridge might be charged if the journey can’t be accomplished with out remaining “exclusively on highways.” For instance, drivers on going from the FDR to the Brooklyn Bridge with out utilizing facet streets, so they will not face a toll. Identical goes for automobiles coming from the Brooklyn Bridge onto the northbound facet of the FDR.
Nevertheless, automobiles coming off the Brooklyn Bridge onto the southbound lanes of FDR Drive might be tolled, as a result of automobiles enter the road grid at Pearl Avenue in decrease Manhattan. Identical goes for drivers going from the FDR to the Manhattan Bridge or Williamsburg Bridge.
For these between FDR Drive and Queensboro Bridge, it is going to be tolled as properly, with one exception: These touring from Queens to the Higher East Facet on the bridge’s higher degree, as a result of that exit dumps out onto East 62nd Avenue — above the Congestion Reduction Zone.
Can automobiles keep away from the toll by parking simply off an excluded roadway (just like the FDR or West Facet Freeway)?
No. The MTA stated that automobiles getting into the Congestion Reduction Zone on roads like FDR Drive or West Facet Freeway after which are not seen by cameras at different detection factors might be charged a toll.
What about taxi or Uber rides?
Passengers in taxis and for-hire automobiles may have a per-trip surcharge added to their fares for rides to, from, inside or by the Congestion Reduction Zone. That cost is 75 cents for folks taking taxis, inexperienced cabs and black automobiles, and $1.50 for Uber or Lyft passengers.
