New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday indefinitely delayed implementation of a plan to charge motorists hefty tolls to enter the core of Manhattan, just weeks before the nation's first “congestion pricing” system was set to launch.
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00:00Our policies must support everyday New Yorkers, like our small business people, police officers, firefighters, teachers, health care workers, truck drivers, and not add to their financial burdens.
00:15So let's talk about congestion pricing, which would impose a $15 charge on cars entering Midtown and below, beginning in just a few weeks.
00:26It was enacted five years ago to achieve two essential goals, reduce traffic and emissions in New York City, and provide a funding stream for much-needed capital investments in public transit.
00:40It was also enacted in a pre-pandemic period, where workers were in the office five days a week, crime was at record lows, and tourism was at record highs.
00:51Circumstances have changed, and we must respond to the facts on the ground, not from the rhetoric from five years ago.
01:00So, after careful consideration, I have come to the difficult decision that implementing the planned congestion pricing system risks too many unintended consequences for New Yorkers at this time.
01:14For that reason, I have directed the MTA to indefinitely pause the program.
01:20Now, I want to be clear. My team worked into the final hours to find a way to implement this, because the goals of congestion pricing, in terms of reducing traffic and pollution, are important.
01:33But hard-working Yorkers are getting hammered on costs, and they, and the economic vitality of our city, must be protected.
01:44We cannot ignore the facts. Literally the year after the enactment of the law, New York City was the epicenter of the pandemic. It was the first and hardest hit of all U.S. cities.
01:55Many predicted New York would not recover. Well, thanks to hard-working and committed New Yorkers, those doomsayers have been proven wrong.
02:04While our recovery has been stronger and swifter than anyone imagined, it is by no means complete, and we cannot afford to undercut this momentum, and I won't allow this delicate recovery to be jeopardized.