Port Authority to hike tolls the same day congestion pricing launches in NYC

New Jersey drivers who commute into Manhattan are in for a double whammy next week as a Port Authority toll hike is slated to land the same day as the launch of the MTA’s long-anticipated congestion pricing fees.

At the strike of midnight on Jan. 5, passenger vehicle drivers who use an E-ZPass will pay an extra 68 cents to cross Port Authority’s bridges and tunnels from the Garden State into New York. The agency’s peak hour charge will increase from $15.38 to $16.06, and its off-peak toll will go up from $13.38 to $14.06.

At the same time, the MTA’s congestion pricing tolls will launch with a $9 daytime fee on passenger vehicles. Those who enter Manhattan via the Holland or Lincoln tunnels and use an E-ZPass will still pay the full Port Authority toll, but will receive a $3 credit against the new MTA charges, meaning their maximum daily charge to drive a passenger car into New York will be $22.06.

The MTA’s launch of congestion pricing comes more than six months after Gov. Kathy Hochul “paused” the MTA’s previous plans to launch the tolls on June 30 at a $15 base price. She lifted her pause less than two weeks after November’s election — and a week later the MTA board approved the tolls to launch on Jan. 5 with a $9 base toll

The Port Authority board followed up in December with its own approval of a Jan. 5 toll hike. MTA spokesperson Aaron Donovan said the two agencies did not coordinate on the date, and that it was merely a coincidence.

The Port Authority will also increase the PATH fare, with the cost of a single ride going up from $2.75 to $3. But that fare hike won’t go into effect until Jan. 12 — a week after the toll increase.

The MTA also anticipates a fare hike of its own next summer, according to the agency’s budget documents. The documents show plans for a 4% price increase for the agency’s fares — as well as its nine bridge and tunnel tolls that aren’t covered by congestion pricing. The agency has not yet announced exactly how it will increase those rates.