NJ's pols scoff at NY congestion pricing plan — but Jersey may actually benefit | Stile

New Jersey officials gushed with predictable fury last week now that New York is moving full steam ahead with its plan to tack on a $15 “congestion pricing fee” on drivers who enter central Manhattan.

“As advertised, New York is officially sticking it to Jersey families with their commuter-crushing Congestion Tax," railed Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-Wyckoff.

Gov. Phil Murphy, fresh off his climate-change dousing of Christmas tree bonfires, also railed about New York soaking New Jersey commuters to help plug a deficit in the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates the city's buses and subways.

“As a conceptual matter, I support congestion pricing, as long as it is structured in a way that is fair to all sides," said Murphy, whose administration is suing to stop or soften New York’s pricing plan, which could begin as early as next spring. “This plan is neither fair nor equitable.”

Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco also slammed the “financial mismanagement” of the MTA and urged county residents to flock to the Winter Wonderland in Van Saun County Park in protest rather than flock to the city over the holiday season.

Will the Jersey chest-pounding be enough to move the Empire State?

Railing against the powerful, arrogant neighbor is good politics — especially for Gottheimer, who is angling for possible run for governor in 2025.

Even if all this parochial chest-pounding is not likely to stop New York’s push — to use a tortured metaphor, the congestion pricing train is already leaving the station — it certainly gives Gottheimer the champion-for-the-beleaguered-commuter credential heading into a race. He’s been much louder than potential rivals Steve Fulop, the Jersey City mayor, or Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-Montclair.

Charles Stile: Faux outrage over congestion tolls may be good politics. NJ Transit is still a mess

And the lawsuits brought by Murphy and Bergen County are not just props for political posturing. The challenges could force a settlement that might, in the end, yield some marginal benefits for New Jersey, such as a commitment to fund air pollution mitigation programs, similar to the ones planned for the Bronx, which is expecting increased traffic volume from drivers in both states seeking to circumvent the higher charges.

Legally, New Jersey probably can’t stop New York from imposing a fee to enter its property south of 60th Street any more than New York — or even the state of New Jersey, for that matter — can stop Avon-by-the-Sea from charging $24 on a summer day for an out-of-town couple to lounge on its beaches.

Still, the legal pushback could lead to higher exemptions than the $5 daytime credit proposed for Holland and Lincoln tunnel motorists. A higher break could potentially discourage “toll shopping," in which commuters will try to avoid the new charge by rerouting to the George Washington Bridge, where motorists will cross without facing the congestion tax.

This could actually be a good deal for Jersey commuters

But if you pull the lens back a bit and view the New York metropolitan transit picture from a wider perspective, you will find that New York's proposed congestion pricing is actually a good deal for most New Jersey commuters.

For one thing, the impact on New Jersey’s daily Manhattan-bound population is limited. Roughly 110,000 go into the city each day by self-driven vehicle — about one-fourth of the 432,000 commuters who arrive by bus, rail or ferry. Motorists tend to be more affluent. Analysts and supporters of congestion pricing say many of them will likely stay on the road and eat the extra cost rather than join the middle-class hordes waiting for a delayed train.

Yes, that new, higher fee imposed on them will wind up in the coffers of the MTA, and yes, it does help the agency cover its long-term capital costs. But who will also benefit? Many of those mass transit commuters from New Jersey.

NYC congestion pricing plan: Drivers may have to pay $15 to enter midtown Manhattan

That’s because many bus and rail commuters also hop on an MTA bus or the subway on their way to their workplace in the city. And it’s in their interest to have a functional, modern subway system that doesn’t break down, with new signaling systems and refurbished stations and state-of-the-art security cameras, and so on.

There is more. For those who walk to their workplace from Penn Station or the Port Authority Bus Terminal, the new tax should make the streets safer. It will mean less traffic and gridlock and fewer pedestrian accidents. And let us not forget that the air should, in theory, be cleaner. It may not provide the clean air of the empty, pandemic-haunted streets of a few years ago, but better.

Another difference between NJ and NY

The flap over congestion pricing also illustrates another important distinction between New York and New Jersey. New York at least has a plan to bolster its large, crucial transit system and stave off fiscal calamity. The MTA took a proactive approach to reversing its pandemic-era deficits.

It enacted a payroll tax on large businesses that depend on city transit. The agency is also slated to receive portions of new casino tax revenues. And it enacted modest fare increases across its train and subway lines.

NJ Transit, meanwhile, is facing a possible $917 million deficit in the next couple of years with no clear plan to deal with it. Murphy quickly shot down a trial-balloon idea floated in the Legislature last week that called for extending a surcharge on corporations and dedicating the revenue for transit needs. But the governor said he is sticking to his plan to let it expire as scheduled at the end of this year.

Murphy, who once vowed that he would fix NJ Transit even if it kills him, offered no insight on how he plans to address the crisis in his final lame-duck years, during a talk at a New Jersey Business and Industry symposium last week.

The ex-Goldman Sachs hand framed NJ Transit’s future in the Wall Street sales lingo that softens the blow of bad news.

“We’re going to see that reality flip, and there’ll be a positive reality," he assured the group. “But it won’t be tomorrow. My gut tells me we're in a six-to-18-month softness, or sideways period of time.”

So New York wants to clean its air, unclog its streets and make transit life better for most New Jersey commuters. That may not turn out to be the “positive reality” as predicted.

But at least it’s a plan.

Charlie Stile is a veteran New Jersey political columnist. For unlimited access to his unique insights into New Jersey’s political power structure and his powerful watchdog work, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: stile@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NYC congestion pricing: NJ postures as commuters could benefit