A congestion pricing scanner is shown above the north-bound side of Broadway, between West 60th and 61st St. in Manhattan, Thursday, November 2, 2023 © Kevin R. Wexler / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
(Trenton, NJ) — New Jersey continues to try and stop the MTA’s congestion pricing program, that charges drivers nine dollar to enter midtown Manhattan. The state is now amending its current lawsuit with new claims. Governor Phil Murphy say they focus on actions taken by the Federal Highway Administration to approve last-minute changes to congestion pricing. Murphy says in March of last year, the MTA adopted a tolling scheme that differed from the tolling schemes previously assessed by the Federal Highway Administration. He says in a quick re-evaluation, the administration rubber-stamped the program without conducting an adequate re-evaluation.
The MTA says New Yorkers like congestion pricing. MTA Chairman Janno Lieber says the toll plan has reduced traffic in midtown and has made streets there safer too. Lieber says he is unsure if President Trump will try to fulfill his campaign promise to end congestion pricing using the Federal Highway Administration. Lieber criticized Governor Phil Murphy for fighting congestion pricing, while tolls on Garden State Parkway, New Jersey Turnpike, and gas tax have all gone up in the Garden State in recent months.
