Gov. Hochul tries to get NJ, suburban drivers on board with congestion pricing

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has a message for drivers in New Jersey and the New York City suburbs: Congestion pricing is good for you.

Hochul, a Democrat, has been struggling to sell the program to suburbanites and New Jersey residents, many of whom are angered that they’ll have to pay a $9 toll to enter Manhattan below 60th Street starting early next year — just six months after Hochul herself blocked a prior $15 toll, saying it was too much for commuters to bear.

Her latest effort to convince suburban naysayers has involved touting the benefits for commuter rail lines in the Hudson Valley and on Long Island, which will receive infrastructure upgrades and repairs thanks to the hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenue the toll will bring in for the MTA. And she’s tried to sweeten the deal for New Jersey, as sources with knowledge of the negotiations told Gothamist – so far without success.

Hochul’s congestion pricing salesmanship comes as settlement talks continue between New York and New Jersey, which has sued to block the toll from taking effect Jan 5. On Wednesday, Hochul said her attorneys had made "very generous offers" that Jersey had thus far declined.

Three sources briefed on negotiations between the two states, but not authorized to discuss them publicly, said New York offered to put money toward the NJ Transit system and boost funding for antipollution projects in Bergen and Essex counties, which could see increased highway traffic when the toll takes effect.

If accepted, the deal would have settled New Jersey’s ongoing lawsuit. A spokesperson for Gov. Phil Murphy, the lead plaintiff, declined to comment on Wednesday.

Hochul didn’t only offer to help New Jersey’s struggling transit system, which in recent months has been plagued with frequent delays and service interruptions. The sources said New York also floated extending a discount to more drivers who enter the Manhattan tolling district from New Jersey, potentially applying to those who drive in via the George Washington Bridge. Lincoln and Holland tunnel drivers will already receive a $3 credit against the congestion toll.

Hochul has been a renewed evangelist for congestion pricing since she announced a scaled back plan last month, about five months after she abruptly paused the previously planned $15 toll from taking effect with competitive congressional elections looming in the suburbs.

Supporters tout the tolling program as a tool to cut down on traffic in Manhattan and reduce pollution while raising much-needed money for the public-transit system. Opponents say it amounts to an unfair tax on commuters to prop up a mismanaged MTA.

New Jersey, the MTA and federal agencies have been in settlement talks for months. Hochul on Wednesday declined to detail what her offer to New Jersey entailed, saying she is “not at liberty to do that.”

But she strongly hinted it could include funding to improve New Jersey’s rail system, which extends into Manhattan. There are about 422,000 people who commute into the Manhattan congestion zone from New Jersey, of which roughly 119,000 travel by car, according to the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council.

“If you're one of the 80% of New Jersey residents who get stuck on NJ Transit or waiting an hour on a PATH train, or you want a nice new bus station, this is going to all be affected if congestion pricing doesn't go through,” Hochul told reporters.

In a statement last month, Murphy said New Jersey has “never been meaningfully consulted on the design of this [congestion-pricing] plan.”

“Perhaps that is because this effort has always simply been a way to take money from the pockets of New Jersey residents to bail out the MTA from a mountain of debt,” Murphy said.

Environmental organizations that support congestion pricing piled on Murphy after Hochul's comments, pressuring him to accept a settlement offer that would allow the toll to move ahead.

“They are turning down significant investments based on the governor's comments that would benefit their own constituents and commuters and would allow Gov. Murphy to rightly claim a significant win for his constituents,” said Justin Balik, senior state program director for Evergreen Action, a Washington-based climate policy organization.

New Jersey’s lawsuit challenges whether the MTA and the Federal Highway Administration did enough to review the effects of congestion pricing. Murphy’s administration wants senior U.S. Judge Leo Gordon to halt the program from taking effect.

“From the beginning, the MTA and [Federal Highway Administration] have adopted an approve-now, figure-it-out-later approach,” attorney Randy Mastro, who is representing Murphy, wrote in a letter to the judge last month. “That is not the ‘hard look’ that federal law requires.”

Mastro has asked Gordon to rule on the lawsuit before Jan. 5.

At the same time, Hochul continues to pitch the congestion-pricing program to skeptical drivers in New York.

Last week, she traveled to the town of Garrison in Putnam County, about an hour north of Manhattan, where she held a news conference on a Metro-North train.

She touted recent improvements to the commuter rail system that weaves its way through the Hudson Valley, including new railings and staircases in the Garrison station. Her subtext was clear: Congestion pricing will help pay for more Metro-North improvements, which suburbanites should appreciate.

“I will tell you, these [repairs] are not glamorous, but they must be done and they cost money,” Hochul said on the train. “And this is how we keep the system safe for millions of our commuters every single day.”

Hochul’s press conference was held in a congressional district represented by Rep. Mike Lawler, a Republican who is frequently mentioned as a potential gubernatorial candidate when Hochul is up for re-election in 2026.

Lawler hasn’t made his thoughts about congestion pricing a secret. He maintains a website: CongestionPricingSucks.com.