Sherrill Slams Newly Announced Congestion Pricing Plan that Imposes Significant Tax on New Jersey Commuters
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) released the following statement after New York’s Traffic Mobility Review Board unveiled its four proposals for Congestion Pricing credits for tolls already paid, proposing credits of between $4 and $7 for the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels and no credit for the George Washington Bridge:
“This plan is just another unfair double tax on New Jersey commuters and a shameless money grab from New York’s MTA. Under this proposal, New Jersey residents would pay over 50 percent more in total fees to commute to Manhattan than New Yorkers living in Brooklyn or Queens, with routes like the Brooklyn and Williamsburg Bridges remaining un-tolled while New Jerseyans pay $17 per trip to cross the Hudson and Lincoln Tunnels.
“This significant disparity between the tolls paid by New Jerseyans compared to New Yorkers is particularly shocking because it will be counterproductive for meeting the plan’s purported environmental goals. By charging different fees at different routes into Manhattan, the proposal will encourage the very bridge and tunnel ‘shopping’ that increase travel times, congestion, and emissions.
“The MTA’s proposal also doesn’t include a single cent of funding for New Jersey Transit — even as thousands of New Jerseyans are taxed under the congestion pricing plan. I share the goal of reducing congestion and emissions by expanding affordable and reliable public transit service, which is why I have fought so hard to secure funding for, and finally get shovels in the ground on, the Gateway Tunnel Project. It is therefore incomprehensible that a congestion pricing proposal would omit any funding for rail projects in New Jersey, which will ultimately make it more difficult and expensive for New Jersey commuters to take the train.”
Sherrill has consistently fought back against New York’s congestion pricing plan that will raise costs for New Jersey commuters. In May 2023, she led a bipartisan letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul urging her to cancel the pending implementation of the plan. In June 2023, Sherrill called upon the State of New Jersey to sue New York over congestion pricing, which Gov. Murphy did in July. Also in June 2023, Sherrill submitted a comment to the Department of Transportation on New York’s Congestion Pricing Environmental Assessment that expressed her significant concerns with how the plan will impact New Jersey residents.
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