One year ago, New York City launched the nation’s first congestion pricing program, charging drivers up to $9 to enter Manhattan below 60th Street. Critics predicted economic disaster. Supporters promised traffic relief. Now the data is in, and it tells a clearer story than either side expected: the program is working, with 27 million fewer vehicles entering the zone and $550 million raised for transit improvements.
Governor Kathy Hochul celebrated the anniversary by touting numbers that would have seemed optimistic a year ago. Traffic into the congestion zone dropped 11 percent, averaging 73,000 fewer vehicles per day. Transit ridership increased across all major lines. Commute times through the Lincoln Tunnel improved by 25 percent. The program that skeptics called unworkable has produced measurable results across nearly every metric its designers hoped to improve.
The Traffic Numbers
The headline figure is stark: 27 million fewer vehicles entered Manhattan’s Central Business District during the program’s first year compared to the year before. That translates to roughly 2.25 million fewer cars per month, a reduction large enough to fundamentally change the experience of moving through midtown and downtown Manhattan.
Travel times improved significantly on major routes. Commutes through the Lincoln Tunnel dropped 25 percent. Holland Tunnel trips became 51 percent faster. Crossings into Brooklyn and Queens via Manhattan bridges improved by about 25 percent. These gains reflect what transportation planners have long understood: even modest reductions in vehicle volume can produce outsized improvements in traffic flow. Roads that operate near capacity slow dramatically with each additional car. Remove a fraction of the vehicles, and the remaining traffic moves more freely.
Bus and subway ridership increased 7 percent year over year. Long Island Rail Road ridership climbed 9 percent. Metro-North saw a 6 percent increase. These numbers suggest that at least some of the drivers who stopped entering Manhattan shifted to public transit rather than simply avoiding the area entirely. The MTA now carries more passengers than it did before congestion pricing, even as it charges tolls that its critics predicted would devastate the city’s economy.
Where the Money Goes
Congestion pricing has raised nearly $550 million in its first year, revenue that the MTA used to back $15 billion in bonds for capital improvements. That money is funding projects across the transit system, from signal upgrades on the A and C lines to new Staten Island Railway cars. The program’s financial success has enabled infrastructure investments that would have required either fare increases or additional state funding without it.
More than $6 billion in projects unlocked by congestion pricing revenue are already in construction. These include Phase 2 of the Second Avenue Subway, accessibility upgrades at nine stations, new signals serving more than 600,000 daily riders on the A and C lines in Brooklyn and Queens, and systemwide state-of-good-repair work that addresses decades of deferred maintenance.
The program’s structure ensures that this revenue stream continues indefinitely. Every car that pays to enter the zone contributes to transit improvements. As the toll increases to $12 in 2028 and $15 in 2031, revenue will grow correspondingly. The MTA has essentially created a self-funding mechanism for capital investment, reducing its dependence on one-time budget appropriations and fare revenue.
Air Quality and Safety
Environmental metrics show meaningful improvement. Air pollution in the congestion zone dropped 22 percent compared to the prior year. Noise complaints to the city’s 311 hotline declined 17 percent. Traffic injuries fell, though exact figures vary depending on how the reduction is measured. For a city that has struggled with air quality in dense neighborhoods, these gains represent tangible public health benefits.
The air quality improvements extend beyond the obvious. Fewer vehicles means less tire and brake particulate matter, which contributes to respiratory illness. Reduced idling cuts carbon monoxide exposure for pedestrians and workers in street-level businesses. The effects are most pronounced in neighborhoods that historically bore the worst pollution burdens: dense commercial districts where traffic concentrated most heavily.
The Complications
The program hasn’t solved every problem, and some new challenges have emerged. The Regional Plan Association identified a concerning side effect: illegal parking complaints in neighborhoods just outside the toll zone jumped 17 percent even as they fell inside Manhattan. Drivers avoiding the toll are parking in outer-borough neighborhoods and commuting in by transit, creating parking pressure in areas that weren’t designed to absorb displaced vehicles.
The program also faces ongoing legal challenges. Efforts by the Trump administration to kill the toll are working their way through federal court in Manhattan. The outcome could affect not just New York’s program but the viability of congestion pricing in other American cities watching New York’s experiment closely. A ruling that undermines federal approval of the tolling scheme could set back urban transportation policy nationally.
Economic impact studies have produced mixed results. The NYC Economic Development Corporation reported 16 million more visits to the Central Business District than the prior year, suggesting the tolls haven’t deterred people from coming to Manhattan. Leisure trips into the zone increased 2.8 percent, while work visits rose 1.3 percent. But individual business owners report varying experiences, and it’s difficult to isolate congestion pricing’s effects from broader economic trends.
What Other Cities Are Learning
New York’s success has intensified interest from other cities considering similar programs. Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and several other metropolitan areas have studied congestion pricing for years without implementation. New York provides the first American case study with real-world data rather than theoretical models.
The lessons are nuanced. Congestion pricing clearly works at reducing traffic and generating revenue. But implementation details matter enormously. New York’s zone covers a specific geography with extensive transit alternatives. Cities without comparable transit infrastructure might not see similar mode shifts. The political challenges of winning approval, which delayed New York’s program for years, may be even more daunting in cities with less severe traffic congestion.
New York’s new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, has expressed support for the program while calling for adjustments that would ease burdens on lower-income drivers who have fewer alternatives to personal vehicles. These debates will shape how congestion pricing evolves and whether it remains politically sustainable through future administrations.
The Bottom Line
One year of data has answered the fundamental question about congestion pricing: it works. Traffic is down, transit use is up, air quality has improved, and the program is generating substantial revenue for infrastructure investment. The catastrophic economic impacts that critics predicted haven’t materialized. Manhattan remains a thriving commercial district, just one with fewer cars clogging its streets.
The program isn’t perfect. Edge effects in surrounding neighborhoods need addressing. Legal challenges pose ongoing risk. Questions about equity and who bears the program’s costs remain legitimate topics for debate. But the core premise of congestion pricing, that charging market rates for scarce road space reduces traffic and funds transit alternatives, has been validated by New York’s experience.
For other American cities stuck in traffic while transit systems deteriorate, New York’s results offer both a model and a challenge. The policy works. The question is whether the political will exists to implement it elsewhere.
Sources: Planetizen, Governor Hochul’s Office, The City, Streetsblog NYC, amNewYork.
