Central area toll for Manhattan proposed by Mayor Bloomberg - to garner $380m/yr

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has announced congestion pricing by way of a central area toll (CAT) for Manhattan as part of a major plan for a "greener greater New York City." His proposal - a fullscale three year trial - defines a congestion pricing zone south of 86th Street where except for use of the West Side Highway/West Street, the FDR Drive, and major bridge approaches there would be an $8 toll for each entry and exit and daily movement within and a $4 toll for internal travel 6am to 6pm weekdays for cars. Trucks would pay $21 for each entry, exit and daily movement within, and $5.50 for internal movement.

E-ZPass users paying tunnel and bridge tolls will have those tolls credited against the CAT.

Exempted from the toll will be taxis, transit buses, emergency vehicles and handicapped license plate holders.

The central area toll is expected to produce net revenue after costs of $380m in its first full year rising to over $900m/yr in 2030.

Proceeds of the CAT will go to various transit and road improvements around the city.

The report has this conclusion:

"We can accept increasing congestion and the damage it will inflict on our economy and quality of life. Or we can act to reshape our transportation network and ensure that New York maintains its position as the world's premier city. That means providing every New York visitor, and worker with transportation that is as attractive, efficient and sustainable as possible."

Details

Tolling will be by gantry or pole mounted open road tolling gear - antenna reads of E-ZPass transponders at regular street speeds and for those without working transponders license plate reading cameras (video tolling). Video tolls will have to be paid on the web, by phone or at walk-in retail counters within 48 hours to avoid violation charges. About 70% of drivers in New York City already have E-ZPass transponders on their windshields.

New York City Department of Transportation will be looking for a contractor to develop, install and maintain the system.

State must approve

Bloomberg needs to get approval from the state legislature in Albany. He has said in interviews he is "going to fight like heck" to get state authority. And he hopes the scheme can be implemented within the remaining 30 months of his term.

The mayor in his speech made little play of the advantages of congestion pricing for motorists - quicker and more reliable travel times, less time sitting in queues. In London, Stockholm and in Norwegian cities there has been great stress on central area tolls as providing improved service to motorists.

Bloomberg talked mainly of the tolls as a way of getting more people to use transit - an emphasis which caused a central area toll scheme to abort in Edinburgh Scotland.

Despite huge investments in improved transit service in New York City and negligible new capacity on the roads in the past several years the mode shares have remained the same.

The report with the awkward name PLANYC (an elision of 'plan NYC') says that congestion is costing the city $13b/yr. It says that congestion pricing is proven: "Cities around the world have shown that congestion pricing can reduce congestion and speed travel times with no significant impact on economic activity."

"In every case where it has been implemented congestion pricing has been successful at reducing traffic both within the congestion zone and outside it, speeding bus service, decreasing delivery times, improving air quality, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions, with no material impact on the economy, including retail activity in the zone in which the charge applies."

(In London significant positive net economic benefits are reported. TRnews)

Three kinds of benefits are cited:

- the reduced congestion and improved travel times
- revenues generated for transit
- reduced tailpipe emissions

"The potential benefits of congestion pricing are tremendous. And there is no reason we cannot turn the system off if we do not like it. That's why we propose to pilot congestion pricing - in its full extent - for a period of three years."

"Everyone who drives, especially in Manhattan, would experience the benefits of reduced traffic an higher speeds. Workers and companies whose income depends on providing services in Manhattan would be more productive. A plumber who currently spends a quarter of his day sitting in his van in Midtown traveling from site to site would be able to do more work every day - increasing his income far more than the $8 fee he pays. Delivery firms would have fewer packages delayed. Buses would run faster. Taxi drivers would carry more fares in a shift. These benefits would lower the costs of doing business in New York City."

The report has a section outlining the success of the London scheme.

They say a combination of federal and private dollars will cover the initial investment. The scheme will be evaluated after the three year trial.

Modeled results

Modeling suggests the fee structure proposed would reduce vehicle-miles traveled in the CAT zone by 6.3% and increase average travel speeds by 7.2%. There would also be benefits though lesser ones in the other boroughs and north of 86th St in Manhattan.

A section of the report dealing with freight says truck access to JFK airport has to be improved and 53ft trailers allowed. Current size restrictions, no-truck parkways, plus congestion have combined to cause a major shift of freight to Newark and further afield.

Truck toll lanes

Truck toll lanes will be pursued:

"On several of New York City's main highways the opportunity exists to explore (the truck toll lane) concept, using medians and in some cases service roads for additional lanes. Key bottlenecks where trucks encounter - and cause - congestion include the Cross Bronx Expressway, the Staten Island Expressway, and the Brooklyn Quaeens Expressway. The City will work with and support the New York State DOT which controls these roads, to explore these self-financing lanes."

Bloomberg on the central area toll plan

Bloomberg in his speech said this of the plan:

"Congestion also leads to higher costs for consumers and businesses – because deliveries cost more than they would and people who cannot use mass transit decide not to come into the city. Who wants to sit in traffic for hours? Congestion wastes fuel – which fuels global warming. And, of course it wastes time. Time we could be spending with family. Or working. Or going to a park.
As the city continues to grow, the costs of congestion – to our health, to our environment, and to our economy – are only going to get worse. The question is not whether we want to pay but how do we want to pay. With an increased asthma rate? With more greenhouse gases? Wasted time? Lost business? And higher prices? Or, do we charge a modest fee to encourage more people to take mass transit?

"I’ve thought about this question a lot. And I understand the hesitation about charging a fee. I was a skeptic myself. But I looked at the facts, and that’s what I’m asking New Yorkers to do. And the fact is in cities like London and Singapore, fees succeeded in reducing congestion and improving air quality. Many people are already paying to drive into Manhattan – there are tolls on most bridges and the four tunnels. But to avoid those tolls, many people drive through neighborhood streets. That not only clogs the streets, it increases air pollution – and asthma rates.

"And why should commuters from the Bronx, Queens, Staten Island, and Brooklyn – and from the northern, eastern, and western suburbs – all pay different tolls? By charging a flat fee, we can eliminate these disparities – because tolls would be deductible. This means that commuters using E-Z pass at the Queens Midtown Tunnel and the Triborough Bridge and the Henry Hudson Bridge and the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels would all pay the same amount and so would commuters taking the Brooklyn, Williamsburg, and Queensborough bridges.

"They’re all going to the same place: why shouldn’t they all be treated equally?
"In setting the fee, there’s no magic number, but it has to be high enough to encourage more people to switch to mass transit and low enough not to break the bank – for businesses and for those who have to drive. Based on thorough analysis and the experience of other cities, we believe that an $8 charge would achieve these goals. There are many different ways that this system could work in New York.
"As a test run, we will seek state authority for a three year pilot project, and we are very optimistic that, in working with state officials, we will secure hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding for it.

"Cars traveling south of 86th Street would be charged $8 but those who travel only within the zone would pay half price. Most New Yorkers would not be affected at all – and not just because the vast majority don’t drive to work. We believe a fee should apply only weekdays – from 6 A.M. to 6 P.M. If you drive into Manhattan during the other twelve hours, or on a weekend, there would be no charge. And if you live below 86th Street, rest assured: you’re not going to pay for the great privilege of moving your car across the street in the morning.

"In addition, even during the 6 A.M. to 6 P.M time period, there would be no charge for using the FDR or the West Side Highway so that people in Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx could still use the highways free of charge whether they’re heading to Yankee Stadium or the Holland Tunnel. Even those who take taxis wouldn’t be affected – because taxis will be exempt. In analyzing congestion pricing, we studied commuting patterns across the city, and we arrived at an astounding finding: of the New Yorkers who work in Manhattan, only five percent commute by car. Five percent!

"That’s why we estimate that city drivers will pay only a little more than half of these congestion pricing fees. Drivers from outside the city will pay the balance.

"We know that convincing this five percent will be particularly hard – because, right now, many feel they don’t have good mass transit options. It’s not that transit doesn’t exist – in fact, in every neighborhood in all five boroughs, the majority of Manhattan-bound commuters do indeed take a subway, bus, or commuter train. But we know that service to many areas is not what it should be. That’s why, before implementing congestion pricing we’ll implement a range of mass transit improvements to our least-served neighborhoods. This means that if you’re among the five percent of residents who commute to Manhattan by car you’ll benefit either from better bus service or faster commutes and fewer headaches.

"And the other 95 percent of New Yorkers will benefit not only from less congestion on roads in all five boroughs and cleaner air and faster buses but also – with the revenue generated from congestion pricing – from new investments in mass transit. And that’s something we definitely need."
see http://www.nyc.gov/html/planyc2030/html/plan/download.shtml

TOLLROADSnews 2007-04-23