Visitors in New York Metropolis has fallen since a congestion cost scheme for automobiles got here into impact on 5 January, transport officers say.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) stated 273,000 fewer automobiles entered the central enterprise district from Monday to Friday, with visitors falling by 7.5% in contrast with estimates for January week days with out the scheme in place.
The congestion payment – the primary of its type within the US – expenses automotive drivers as much as $9 (£7) a day, with various charges for different automobiles.
The congestion zone covers an space south of Central Park, taking in such well-known websites because the Empire State Constructing, Occasions Sq. and the monetary district round Wall Road.
“The early information backs up what New Yorkers have been telling us all week – visitors is down, the streets really feel safer, and buses are shifting quicker,” stated Janno Lieber, who heads the MTA.
Motorists are additionally saving time, whereas native and categorical buses are shifting quicker, particularly within the morning commute, the MTA posted on X.
The scheme goals to ease New York’s infamous visitors issues and lift billions for the general public transport community.
Most drivers are charged $9 as soon as per day to enter the congestion zone at peak hours, and $2.25 at different occasions.
Small vans and non-commuter buses pay $14.40 to enter Manhattan at peak occasions, whereas bigger vans and vacationer buses pay a $21.60 payment.
Whereas the cost has been welcomed by many, it has encountered loads of opposition.
Probably the most high-profile opposition has come from President-elect Donald Trump, a local New Yorker who has vowed to kill the scheme when he returns to workplace this month.
Final yr, New York Metropolis was named the world’s most-congested city space for the second yr in a row, in keeping with INRIX, a visitors information evaluation agency.
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, 2025-01-14 01:29:00