The city's mayor has criticized controversial new driving fees by proposing a “reverse congestion pricing charge”.
Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop is pitching the idea against neighboring New York City's $9-a-day congestion pricing.
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The mayor believes reverse congestion pricing is the solution to the Big Apple's controversial new tax.
He claims the money raised will go to fund New Jersey's mass transit system.
Fulop, who is also running for governor of the Garden State, defended the proposed scheme.
“New Jersey has the same opportunity to push the buttons that New York has on us,” he said.
More about congestion charges in New York City
“We can do that to them, but the goal is to get to the table to come up with a reasonable solution.”
He said the move would hit New Yorkers the way the death toll hit drivers in New Jersey.
“There are a lot of crossings between Staten Island and New York and Bergen County and Hudson County to New Jersey,” he said.
“There's a lot of opportunity to get the same kind of impact fees that New York charges New Jersey.”
He added that New Jersey Transit is currently a “bad product” for customers, and is in desperate need of investment.
But he warned that unless his state had a “reliable transportation system,” people would not switch from their cars to the train.
He also criticized current New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy for missing the opportunity to secure more transportation funding for his state as part of New York's congestion toll.
Congestion toll in New York
New York has become the first major US city to introduce a form of congestion pricing:
- Starting January 5, 2025, most vehicles will have to pay a $9 congestion fee in parts of New York City.
- The affected area is everything south to 60th Street in Manhattan, where Central Park begins.
- Only the FDR Freeway, on the east side of the island, the West Side Expressway, on the west side, and the Hugh L Carey Tunnel connecting them at the south end, would be excluded from the congestion toll, provided they do not exit into Manhattan at or below 60th Street.
- The idea is to reduce congestion in Manhattan, improve air quality, and fund the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
- The toll affects the majority of cars, SUVs, vans and minivans.
- Vehicles eligible for the toll must have an E-ZPass, which will charge them a $9 toll once per day.
- This toll will drop to $2.25 during the overnight hours.
- Peak traffic hours range between 5am and 9pm on weekdays, and between 9am and 0pm on weekends.
- Drivers without E-ZPass will be mailed bills and will have to pay more — $13.50 for peak hours and $3.30 for overnight stays.
- Motorcyclists will pay half what cars pay — $4.50 — during the peak period.
- Buses and trucks, depending on their size, will pay more.
- Exceptions include some emergency vehicles, school buses, people with disabilities who cannot ride public transportation, and those who transport it.
- Low-income drivers who pay the fee 10 times a month can apply for a 50% discount on the trips they take for the rest of the month.
- Riders of taxis and for-hire vehicles will have an additional per-trip fee added to their fares, at a rate of 75 cents for people taking taxis, green cabs and black cars, and $1.50 for Uber or Lyft riders.
“This was an opportunity to bring hundreds of millions of dollars to New Jersey Transit, and I think the governor took a very easy policy approach,” he added.
Fulop says bridges or toll collection sites could be located outside the state's tunnels and bridges.
There may be transit exemptions or credits, just as with congestion pricing.
It's not clear whether, like congestion fares, New Jersey drivers will pay re-entry fees to their home state as some New Yorkers do.
New York's MTA has not yet released official findings of the impact of congestion pricing on the city during its first days.
However, preliminary data suggest that the program's impact on traffic reduction is mixed.
The city saw lighter traffic on the bridges and tunnels leading to the Congestion Relief Zone (CRZ) south of 60th Street including, especially the Holland and Lincoln tunnels, on January 5, the first day of operations.
However, there were slightly more vehicles on toll-free roads, including FDR Road.
