Gov. Kathy Hochul took a victory lap Monday on the one-year anniversary of congestion pricing in Manhattan, touting fewer vehicles and boosted bus speeds in the toll zone since the tolls went into effect.<\/p>\n
The MTA wrote in a new report that 27 million fewer vehicles entered the central business district \u2014 Manhattan below 60th Street \u2014 in the first year of the program charging drivers a base fare of $9. On average, there was an 11% reduction in traffic each day in the zone, compared to the year before the tolls went live.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re winning this battle one year into it,\u201d Hochul said at a celebratory news conference.<\/p>\n
Hochul, Mayor Zohran Mamdani and MTA Chair Janno Lieber praised the program for improving air quality and raising revenue for improvements to public transit.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also celebrate what this has meant for New Yorkers, whether they are driving, whether they are biking, whether they are walking, taking a bus, taking the train, whether they are just breathing the air in the city they call home,\u201d Mamdani said. \u201cBecause this is a program that has been successful no matter how you measure it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mamdani\u2019s appearance was notable. His predecessor, Mayor Eric Adams, opted not to defend<\/a> the program, and often directed questions about the tolls to the MTA and Hochul.<\/p>\n Bus speeds in the toll zone have sped up by 2.3% \u2014 a data point that aligns with half of Mamdani\u2019s campaign pledge to make buses fast and free.<\/p>\n