New York will introduce a Congestion Relief Zone toll on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025.
Drivers will be charged a toll on their E-ZPass once per day when they enter the Congestion Relief Zone, which is all local streets below 60th Street in Manhattan.
The toll does not apply to FDR Drive, the West Side Highway and the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel connecting to West Street. However, you will be tolled if you exit from an excluded roadway onto a street within the CRZ. If you live in within the CRZ, you can apply for the Low-Income Tax Credit for Residents of the CRZ.
Tolls vary by vehicle and the time of day. The peak period toll rate will apply from 5:00am to 9:00pm on weekdays and 9:00am to 9:00pm on weekends. All other times, drivers will be charged off-peak toll rate.
Passenger and small commercial vehicles will be charged $9 during peak hours and $2.25 during off-peak hours and motorcycles will be charged $4.50 (peak) and $1.05 (off-peak). Trucks and buses will pay a toll depending on their size and function during both peak and off-peak hours, which range from $14.40 - $21.60 during peak hours, and $3.60 - $5.40 during off-peak hours.
Vehicles without an E-ZPass will pay 50% more than the usual rate. Drivers without E-ZPass will be mailed a toll bill to the address of the registered vehicle.
The program will be enacted to reduce traffic and travel time, lead to safer streets and cleaner air and reduce emissions, city officials have said.
There are several discounts and exemptions available, including for low-income residents and disabled drivers. For more information on the available discounts, click here.
The MTA said it will offer weekend discounts for Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North monthly ticket holders. For more information on this train ticket discount click here.
The implementation of the plan, however, may be delayed as attorneys for the administration of N.J. Governor Phil Murphy filed a motion on Thursday seeking to stop the toll pending federal regulators’ response to an order issued earlier this week by Federal Judge Leo Gordon, according to the New York Daily News.
On Monday, Gordon issued a “remand in part” of the Federal Highway Administration’s approval of congestion tolling.
Gordon said the administration must account for why New York’s congestion pricing plan details specific pollution mitigations for the Bronx, but fails to detail such plans for several New Jersey towns even though both regions are expected to see an increase in motor vehicle traffic after the plan goes into effect.
A hearing on the motion is expected in Newark Federal Court Friday afternoon, the newspaper said.
