America’s first congestion pricing experiment, which would have charged drivers to enter congested areas of Manhattan in exchange for a fee to reduce traffic and pay for much-needed upgrades to the city’s public transportation system, was about to be implemented in New York City. But on Wednesday, the Democratic governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, suddenly ruined the idea. Hochul told reporters, “After careful consideration, I have come to the difficult decision that there are too many unintended consequences if the planned congestion pricing system is implemented.” The intention had been to lessen traffic in the most congested American city, where average commute times have dropped to 7 mph. A $15 toll that would have been paid by almost every car entering lower Manhattan was supposed to reduce air pollution and generate $1 billion annually for public transportation.
