Hochul to announce Thursday new congestion pricing plan; sources say Manhattan toll will be $9

ALBANY — Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday will announce a modified congestion pricing plan for Manhattan that, according to two sources familiar with the discussions, will start the toll at $9 in a bid to get the process rolling before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.

Hochul earlier this year had put on hold a planned toll hike that would have charged drivers $15 for entering the busiest parts of Manhattan, saying the fee was too high. She’s been promising a new plan by year’s end and has been reaching out to lawmakers to "suss out" support for making it $9 with gradual increases, the sources said.

The plan also might include a bump in certain payroll taxes in some jurisdictions, one source said.

Late Wednesday afternoon, the Hochul administration confirmed a new plan will be unveiled, but didn't give specifics.

"Governor Hochul paused congestion pricing because a daily $15 toll was too much for hardworking New Yorkers in this economic climate. Tomorrow, the Governor will announce the path forward to fund mass transit, unclog our streets and improve public health by reducing air pollution," spokesman Avi Small said in a statement Wednesday.

Last week, Hochul confirmed she recently spoke with officials in President Joe Biden’s administration about "the need to take affirmative steps to ensure that nothing compromises the MTA."

But even if the feds sign off before Biden leaves the White House on Jan. 20, there is a possibility Trump would kill it — as he vowed to during the campaign.

The plan for congestion pricing was supposed to launch in June, and the electronic license plate readers and other infrastructure pieces were in place. Advocates said the toll would encourage the use of mass transit, reduce gridlock and earmark money to help the Metropolitan Transportation Authority issue bonds to fund capital upgrades for the metro area’s mass transit system.

Hochul placed it hold just weeks before launch, saying $15 was too high. But critics called it a tactic to take the issue off the table for congressional campaigns in New York’s suburbs.

Since June, the governor has said often that she planned to unveil a new proposal by year’s end.

The federal government would need to sign off on a new plan. Further, some have questioned whether a revised plan would trigger a new federal environmental review and delay implementation.

Advocates have urged Hochul to act quickly.

Lisa Daglian, executive director of the MTA Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee, a transit advocacy group, recently told Newsday the "window is closing" to put the tolling plan in place.

"The president-elect has made it really clear that [congestion pricing] is DOA under his administration," Daglian said. "The time is really now or never."

Trump’s vow has some Democrats privately questioning whether Hochul should go forward at all with a new plan. They note the $9 fee will be criticized as too low by transportation and environmental advocates and, if Trump squelches it, it will play well for Republicans in swing congressional and state legislative districts.

The MTA has been counting on congestion pricing to deliver $1 billion in annual toll revenue to finance $15 billion in planned infrastructure upgrades, including on the Long Island Rail Road.

Last week, when asked about the added urgency to address congestion pricing before Trump is sworn in, Hochul said "this is a scenario that we planned for" while again promising a new funding plan for the MTA by the end of the year.

With The Associated Press

By Yancey Roy

yancey.roy@newsday.com@yanceyroy