BREAKING NEWS: Hochul directs MTA to delay congestion pricing: VIDEO

Gov. Kathy Hochul said today that she has directed the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to indefinitely delay the start of congestion pricing, which involves a new $15 toll on private cars traveling below 60th Street in Manhattan and higher tolls for trucks. Hochul said she is concerned about costs faced by New Yorkers and whether the congestion tolls would contribute to people working from home, thereby hurting businesses in New York City.

Hochul said that a $15 charge may not seem like much to someone who has the means but it can really hurt many families. She said that she is committed to funding for the MTA’s needs and is currently exploring other funding sources to replace the congestion pricing revenues that were to be used to pay for improvements to the transit system.

She said that traffic congestion in Manhattan will be tackled in ways other than congestion pricing. She pointed out that when congestion pricing was in the formative stages five years ago economic circumstances were different.

“After careful consideration I have come to the difficult decision that implementing the planned congestion pricing system risks too many unintended consequences for New Yorkers at this time,” Hochul said. “For that reason, I have directed the MTA to indefinitely pause the program. The goals of congestion pricing in terms of reducing traffic and pollution are important. But, hard-working New Yorkers are getting hammered on costs.”

Congestion pricing had been due to start on June 30. The E-ZPass and license plate readers that would be used to identify vehicles and provide data to collect the tolls already have been installed in Manhattan.

Politico and The New York Times were among the first to report that Gov. Hochul was considering ordering a delay in implementation of the new tolls. It was speculated that Hochul was becoming increasingly concerned that putting the tolls into effect before the November elections could cost the Democratic Party some House seats as well as losses in other elections.

Hochul had been an early advocate for congestion pricing, which was designed to raise $1 billion a year for the MTA. Reports said she has become concerned in recent days that the tolls could have a negative effect on the New York City economy in addition to possibly enraging voters before the elections.

Politico reported that a source said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries pressed Hochul to delay the new tolls because they might interfere with his efforts to win Democratic control of the House. Republicans in the House from Upstate New York have made it a point to run against congestion pricing.

The New York Times reported that two people familiar with what’s happening said Hochul has been quietly pushing back on congestion pricing for some time. They reportedly said she has been considering a new tax on New York City businesses to make up some of the money that the MTA would lose as a result of not moving ahead with the new tolls.