Wait no longer: MTA prepares to introduce entry fees for Manhattan

According to a new report from the government watchdog group, the New York City Transportation Administration (MTA) desperately needs the money that the department can get from introducing tolls on congested roads. In particular, in New York they plan to take money for entering Manhattan. The MTA has less than 4% of the cash needed for its ambitious five-year overhaul plan. The renovation costs nearly $ 55 billion and aims to modernize the city's dilapidated metro and bus systems. AMNY... But it will definitely not be possible to cover these costs without introducing an entry fee to Manhattan, so the department intends to act in this direction as quickly as possible.

Rachel Fauss, Senior Research Fellow at Reinvent Albany, is a co-author of the AIT Financial Performance Report. She said that "the MTA cannot afford to lose revenue from tolls on congested roads."

According to the analysis, MTA officials have only $ 2 billion 54,8 billion needed to carry out the overhaul scheduled for 2020-2024. And this despite the fact that 18 months have already passed from the planned repair schedule. Therefore, the department needs to hurry with the introduction of a plan to collect fees for entering Manhattan. The plan was adopted a long time ago, but its introduction was delayed due to the reluctance of the 45th US President Donald Trump to sign a document authorizing the promotion of the plan. The document was signed by Joe Biden and now things should go faster.

This is the first such proposal in the country - so far no city in the United States has been charged money for driving on busy roads. According to the document, the fee will be charged to drivers entering the Central Business District of Manhattan from 60th Street or below. The proposal is critical to funding the current capital plan as it unlocks $ 15 billion in bonds for MTA projects. Plus, Manhattan's entry fees will bring in $ 1 billion a year.

On the subject: Manhattan decriminalized prostitution: hundreds of cases closed

Proponents of the idea hail it not only because of the money, but also as a way to reduce traffic congestion and pollution. They support the shift from commuting to work with a private car to public transport.

The MTA estimates that the environmental assessment of the project required to introduce the fee will take 16 months. This will postpone the implementation of the solution until at least November 2022. As such, the agency does not expect $ 1 billion in annual revenues to be available before 2023.

But New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, who actively supports the introduction of tolls on congested roads, criticized the 16-month schedule, calling it "ridiculous." He added that the MTA needs to be faster.

What are the prices

In 2019, New York State legislators approved a conceptual plan for the collection system. About 717 vehicles entering Manhattan every day from anywhere south of Central Park must pay a toll.

Under the proposal, local authorities will charge a once-a-day variable toll charge for vehicles entering or stopping in the "Central Business District," a designated area that stretches from 60th Street in Midtown to Battery Park.

On the subject: City officials close one of the Brooklyn Bridge car lanes

The most congested area, according to calculations, turned out to be the central and southern parts of Manhattan, about a third of the island, the border was drawn along 60th Street. Anything north of this street (Harlem, Upper East Side and West Side) will be free. Anything further south (the business districts of Midtown, Times Square, Soho, Chelsea, Tribeca, and Wall Street) is for money.

$ 11 for entry on weekdays and $ 4 on weekends should bring the city a billion dollars annually.