$15 to drive into new york city

[yhoomajor]

Yeah force people to use Germ-infested ultra crowded Subways. When someone sneezes in a crowded subway, Virus and Bacteria float around nicely to marinate air that people are breathing in.

 

[MarieIG]

I am not a fan of driving into Manhattan. During my working years, I typically took the subway.

One exception, my mother was hospitalized in one of the Manhattan Hospitals for several months before she passed (related to surgeries and complications from cancer) and DH drove DF and myself into Manhattan to visit her several times a week. At that time, DF was also undergoing treatment for cancer, was very weak, and had difficulty walking. DH would stop in front of the entrance, take out the wheelchair, and park the car. After the visits he would also manage to get the car very close to an exit and help me get DF back into the car.

 

[Al18]

To go over the GW Bridge now costs $13.38 to $15.38 (peak hours). Plus an additional $15 to get into NYC?

Do you get a meal with that?

 

[braumeister]

To go over the GW Bridge now costs $13.38 to $15.38 (peak hours).

That's assuming you have E-Z-Pass. If not, it's $17.63. Considering it costs billions to maintain it, that's not unreasonable. The world's busiest motor vehicle bridge, carrying over 104 million vehicles a year. I lived in NYC and remember when they built the lower deck to double the traffic volume. We used to refer to the lower deck as the Martha Washington Bridge.

 

[grasshopper]

I don't! I remember having to remember to have coins, and I was a very early adopter of EZ-Pass, I think I got my first one in the 90s. And now I love when I can use Google Pay for meters and parking lots.

I still have a few subway tokens stashed away, along with a penny pack of chewing gum.

 

[disneysteve]

I’m not understanding how this will work. We already pay a toll to drive into the city. We typically use the Lincoln Tunnel. Are they going to add an additional $15 to the current toll?

I don’t see this doing anything to reduce congestion. People aren’t going to stay away over $15.

 

[aja8888]

They are doing this backwards. They should let you in for free and charge you every time you leave.

 

[braumeister]

I don’t see this doing anything to reduce congestion. People aren’t going to stay away over $15.

It seems to work pretty well in London. Fines for nonpayment are high.
The idea is not only to reduce vehicle congestion but also pollution (smog).

 

[disneysteve]

It seems to work pretty well in London. Fines for nonpayment are high.
The idea is not only to reduce vehicle congestion but also pollution (smog).

I would imagine for NYC it would be added to the existing tolls to enter the city meaning the fee for the tunnel would go from about $17 to $32 or thereabouts (less with EZ Pass). I just don't see many people changing their plans because of that. I certainly wouldn't. I don't think $15 is a deterrent.

 

[Texas Proud]

so this is not something new? it is the first I heard of it. it just seems crazy that they can charge you to use the streets our tax dollars are already paying for.

Well, they can and they do... not sure if this is required 24/7 or it is really for congestion... (just looked... there is a proposed reduced rate at night).. they do charge for going over some bridges...



I did look at London's and theirs is during the day, so if you go in at night or sometime during the weekend you do not pay..


BTW, they converted a free highway here to a toll road a few years back... almost all toll roads were paid for by bonds so it was not by the taxpayer..

 

[marko]

Like almost everything else, this hurts the lower income people most.

Even with a low income subsidy it will drive them to the subway which has become dangerous enough that they now have the National Guard patrolling all the stations. Someone is getting killed there almost every day.

Meanwhile the Wall St crowd will still be shuttled around in their limousines.

 

[MichaelB]

Like almost everything else, this hurts the lower income people most.

Even with a low income subsidy it will drive them to the subway which has become dangerous enough that they now have the National Guard patrolling all the stations. Someone is getting killed there almost every day.

Meanwhile the Wall St crowd will still be shuttled around in their limousines.

Parking is NYC is hideously expensive so it’s unlikely low income people are currently driving. They are already using public transportation.

Crime is indeed an issue but the “almost every day” is wildly exaggerated. https://nypost.com/2024/03/24/us-news/attacks-in-nyc-transit-jump-50-as-subway-murders-surge-stats/

There were three murders underground in 2019 compared to 10 in 2022 and five in 2023, according to the analysis.

There have already been three murders in the first three months of 2024, the data show.

The NYC subway is still a good way to get around the city. The bigger issue is not crime, it’s infrastructure, currently underfunded.

When Mayor Bloomberg was elected Mayor in 2007 he announced his support for congestion pricing. It took this long to get it approved. The city does not have enough space to absorb the volume of vehicles, it’s a matter of physical limitations.

 

[Koolau]

I was watching the news with David Muir the other night and they reported that the city of new york was going to start charging 15. for people to go to downtown new york city in order to ease congestion and help pay for the infrastructure. They are going to use cameras to enforce the law. My question is if new york can do this what will be the next move? Can this spread to smaller and less populated areas? can governments charge you to use tax payer funded roadways anyway they see fit?

Gummints can and will charge us anything we allow them to.

 

[MichaelB]

Gummints can and will charge us anything we allow them to.

What do you suggest?

 

[Walt34]

They are gonna have to pay me much more than $15 to go to NYC.

My sentiments exactly.

 

[braumeister]

It's easy to forget, but NYC is very big, and the five boroughs are very parochial. I grew up in Brooklyn, and only very rarely went into Manhattan. That's pretty typical of most New Yorkers. Even those who work there normally use the subway system (which is excellent IMHO).

 

[lucky penny]

I wish those who make knee-jerk anti-NY comments would reconsider. (I count at least 4 so far.)

I strongly doubt I'd ever want to live where you folks do but don't feel the need to jump in & say so whenever the location is mentioned.

I moved to NYC after college & have never wanted to live anywhere else.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

I wish those who make knee-jerk anti-NY comments would reconsider. (I count at least 4 so far.)

I strongly doubt I'd ever want to live where you folks do but don't feel the need to jump in & say so whenever the location is mentioned.

I moved to NYC after college & have never wanted to live anywhere else.

Some people aren't happy with what they have unless they can feel like it's better than what someone else has, or that someone else is miserable with what they have.

 

[lucky penny]

Like almost everything else, this hurts the lower income people most.

Even with a low income subsidy it will drive them to the subway which has become dangerous enough that they now have the National Guard patrolling all the stations. Someone is getting killed there almost every day.

Meanwhile the Wall St crowd will still be shuttled around in their limousines.

FACT: 32 total murders in subway trains & stations since January 2020. Not to minimize that, but don't throw out numbers that are wildly inaccurate.

I take the subway everywhere (with 3.2 million others every day) & have never had problems.

 

[MC Rider]

I'm sure it has it's charms, but have no desire to go to NYC, had my fill of living in big cities. But if I was going, $15? That's nothing for someone visiting. I'd spend more than that in airport bars getting there.

 

[disneysteve]

I'm sure it has it's charms, but have no desire to go to NYC, had my fill of living in big cities. But if I was going, $15? That's nothing for someone visiting. I'd spend more than that in airport bars getting there.

Exactly. And most people driving in probably have EZ Pass so won’t even notice the extra charge.

If we go to the city, we know we’ll spend a couple hundred on food, $300-400 on show tickets, maybe $300 for a hotel for the night plus more for parking as well as gas and tolls. An extra $15 is barely a blip on the total cost of the trip.

 

[MC Rider]

$300 cheap! Is that Motel 6 or something?

 

[braumeister]

I was born in Brooklyn and lived there until my early 20s. I still have quite a few friends there and none of them would ever even consider moving away.

It really can be an incredibly exciting and wonderful place to live (like many other great cities of the world), but your personal temperament has to be able to deal with that kind of ultra-urban environment.

In my case, I was happy to leave and even though I go back to visit briefly every few years I wouldn't want to live there now. We all change over time.

I still believe that everyone should spend at least a week there to appreciate some of what the most populous city in the US has achieved in its 400 years of existence.

 

[jollystomper]

Here is a link showing exactly how the toll will be implemented, along with a map of the "congestion area" where it will be applied and exemption criteria:

https://www.timeout.com/newyork/new...ncluding-start-date-exemptions-and-map-030124

 

[braumeister]

Here is a link showing exactly how the toll will be implemented, along with a map of the "congestion area" where it will be applied and exemption criteria

Thanks, that makes it clear. Essentially the part of Manhattan that experiences the most horrible congestion.