Fight for Congestion Pricing—and a Better NYC

We have to demand New York gets moving—finally

Hi All,

Think back to 2007. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix made magic at the box office while Rihanna’s Umbrella made rain on the charts. The fall of Lehman Brothers and the rise of Barack Obama were still a year away. Congestion pricing was first proposed in New York City. 

Yes, the plan to toll cars driving into Manhattan south of 60th street is old enough to be looking at colleges, and yet we’re still fighting tooth and nail to get it done. 

We need to go on the offensive—now. The MTA’s final public hearings are happening over the coming days, and the public comment period closes on March 11. Here’s what you can do:

•  Submit a written comment before March 11. (Or keep it super simple via this pre-filled form.)

•  Testify at an MTA hearing in person or by Zoom: tomorrow at 6pm, Friday at 10am, or Monday at 10am or 6pm. (Advocates, including me, are rallying before the hearing tomorrow!)

Why so urgent? After over a decade of advocacy, congestion passed was made law by the state legislature in 2019. After another half-decade of environmental review and hammering out the specifics, it’s almost time to turn on the toll. But opponents are still fighting, with lawsuits to block it entirely and calls to weaken the program with exemptions. (The lawsuits are even forcing the MTA to put its planned capital improvements on hold.) 

Congestion pricing will generate billions of dollars for mass transit while reducing traffic, carbon emissions, and traffic fatalities via a toll that properly reflects the social costs of cars—paid for by drivers, New Yorkers with double the median income of those who don’t drive. Watch this great MTA video to learn more.

Progress towards easier rides, faster buses (currently the slowest in the country!), better subways, cleaner air, and safer streets has crawled as slowly as a car through midtown gridlock. If opponents get their way, it'll be blocked forever.

We have to show them we’re demanding New York gets moving—finally.
Ryder