When congestion pricing arrives, New York must reclaim street and sidewalk space for pedestrians
Both proponents and opponents of congestion pricing frame the program, provisionally slated to begin in June, as good for transit riders and bad for drivers. One group is left out — and it’s a group that includes almost everyone: pedestrians, whether on foot for their entire journey, or walking to and from a transit stop or parked car. Though the state-run Metropolitan Transportation Authority is in charge of congestion pricing, the state and city government are in charge of Manhattan streets: The State determines the traffic laws that govern speed and other driver behavior, and the City designs the streets and regulates parking violations. If and when congestion pricing begins, the Hochul and Adams administrations must use the extra room on the road to improve everyday life for walkers — or see disorder and disarray fill the void.
The MTA projects that once it starts levying a $15 fee on car and SUV drivers to enter Manhattan 60th Street or below ($3.75 between 9 p.m. and 5 p.m., and a higher overall rate for trucks), 100,000 of the 700,000 motor vehicles, mostly cars, that enter core Manhattan daily will disappear. The decreased vehicle volume is expected to result in a 7% to 9% decrease in the number of miles clocked daily by motor vehicles within the zone. During congested daytime hours, drivers should see some improvement in travel time from the current 7.1 mph daytime travel speeds.
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Nicole Gelinas is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and contributing editor at City Journal. Follow her on Twitter here.
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