Call them “poor authorities.”
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy is concerned that a new $9 congestion charge to enter midtown Manhattan will actually reduce traffic and revenue at the Hudson River Bridge and Tunnel intersection. are.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, overseen by Mr. Murphy and an appointee of New York Gov. Cathy Hochul, has collected more than $2 billion in revenue from tolls on the Lincoln Tunnel, Holland Tunnel, George Washington Bridge, and other structures. is increasing.
“As you are aware, New Jersey has serious concerns regarding New York and the Metropolitan Authority's congestion pricing program,” Murphy said in a letter to the agency's chairman, Kevin O'Toole.
“Please allow this letter to serve as a formal request for statistical information regarding the impact of New York State's congestion pricing system on the Port Authority of New York State and New Jersey.”
Murphy is asking for total bridge and tunnel crossings and passenger vehicle counts for January and each future month, as well as traffic and toll data for 2024 and 2023 for comparison. Impact on congestion pricing. ”
The letter was issued after the introduction of a $9 congestion fee for drivers entering Manhattan south of 60th Street, supported by Hochul.
Drivers crossing from Jersey to Holland or Lincoln now have to pay a tunnel toll and a congestion toll, with a $3 discount on the double toll.
The authority relies on its own fare revenue to maintain the intersection and support other important programs, such as the PATH train that brings New Jersey commuters into Manhattan and the planned Midtown Bus Terminal.
Officials are also imposing tolls on roads connecting the Garden State to New York via Staten Island: Bayonne Bridge, Goethals Bridge and Outerbridge Crossing.
A Pennsylvania spokesperson said the state will provide traffic and toll data to Murphy's office in the future.
“Tolls fund critical interstate transportation infrastructure that keeps our region moving,” said PA spokesman Seth Stein.
“These proceeds will enable us to make once-in-a-generation capital investments that will transform our major assets, including a top-to-bottom renovation of the George Washington Bridge, a complete replacement of the Midtown Bus Terminal, and a complete overhaul of our tracks, signals, and equipment. station in the PATH system.
Murphy makes “valid points” about traffic and toll revenue in Pennsylvania, said Danny Perlstein of the Riders Alliance, a mass transit advocate who supports congestion pricing.
But he expects the decline in PA revenue to be minimal and that the reduction in traffic and congestion so far is a good thing.
“Mr. Murphy is watching this from a helicopter, but he's not seeing what's happening on the ground,” he said.
Meanwhile, Hochul said Wednesday that previous congestion charges have been successful in easing congestion and speeding up traffic in Midtown.
Although she is “not declaring the mission complete,” she said in an interview with NY1 that it is “working” as intended.
At Murphy's request, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) sent a letter to President Trump on Thursday, co-signed by 20 other elected officials, requesting that the federal government They called for the approval to be withdrawn and the congestion charge to be abolished.
Trump opposes charging fees.
Among the signatories were Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon and Borough President Vito Fossella.
