Trucking: New York State Senate rejects Bloomberg's congestion pricing plan

Jeff Berman, Senior Editor -- Logistics Management, 7/17/2007

NEW YORK—The New York State Senate yesterday rejected a plan by Mayor Michael Bloomberg which proposed charging a fee to drivers entering the most congested parts of Manhattan, according to an article published in The New York Times.

Bloomberg’s plan, which was originally introduced on Earth Day in April, would have charged a congestion fee for drivers coming into Manhattan during peak hours on weekdays, the Times reported. And the congestion fee—$8 for cars and $21 for trucks— would have been imposed between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. While motorists and truckers driving along Manhattan’s east and west sides would not be fined, the fee would have been deducted from the tolls commuters already pay to come into Manhattan via the connecting bridges or tunnels. Since the vehicles would not be stopping at toll booths, the plan called for a network of cameras that would have captured license plate numbers and charge a driver’s existing commuter account or generate a bill.

According to the Times report, the New York State Senate adjourned without taking up the plan, when it became apparent that there would not be enough votes required to approve the proposal. If the plan had been approved, New York City would have been able to collect up to $500 million in federal aid “to strengthen mass transit, reduce traffic congestion and improve the quality of New York’s air” and improve and modernize mass transit throughout Greater New York City, according to New York State Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno in a statement issued on July 13.

When Bloomberg’s proposal was first introduced it was met with mixed reactions from prominent transportation officials.

American Trucking Associations CEO Bill Graves said congestion pricing would increase transportation costs and hurt the economy. He added that higher manufacturers’ and retailers’ operating costs would translate into higher consumer costs for things like gasoline, clothing, and food, among others. Fuels taxed, noted Graves, would be a more efficient method for finance new infrastructure that effectively reduced congestion.

Alternatively, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters praised the plan, calling it “the kind of bold thinking leaders across the country need to embrace if we hope to win the battle against traffic congestion.”

John Gentle, Logistics Management columnist and president of John A. Gentle & Associates LLC, said that if this proposal had been approved, there would not have been any sharp increase in congestion reduction in Manhattan or improved operational efficiencies for shippers.

“New York City already has rules regarding when commercial vehicles can be used to deliver goods and services,” said Gentle. “My sense is that this could be viewed as a revenue gainer. There is a system like this in London, which has been largely ineffective, with even more people driving into the city and paying a higher fee, and now fees are being raised again.”

Gentle added it is highly unlikely a system like this would solve congestion-related problems.

“The real issue here is that society is unwilling to change its receiving practices to deal with the current issues of congestion,” he said. “Although this [proposal] is trying to discourage trucks from entering New York City, there is still going to be a need for FedEx and UPS trucks or whoever to deliver all kinds of goods and services. And if stores refuse to be open at certain times, then truckers are at the mercy of shippers and receivers. It is not like they set the rules and decide to go into the City whenever they please.”