A year ago today, Jan. 5, congestion pricing went into effect for vehicles entering Manhattan south of 61st St. It marked a historic moment: New York became the first city this side of the Atlantic to implement such a program, joining London, Stockholm, Milan, Singapore and others.
We at Roosevelt House have studied data from a variety of sources and the topline findings are clear: the program is working. Vehicle entries to the Congestion Relief Zone (CRZ) are down, commute times on every major crossing into the zone have improved, and the program is generating dedicated funding for transit. This, despite a dozen lawsuits, predictions of businesses dying, and a presidential proclamation declaring it “DEAD.”
So what else have we learned after a full year?
First, the economic fears have not materialized. NYC’s post-pandemic recovery continues. Broadway attendance is up 10% this season compared to last. Citywide sales tax revenue jumped 6.3% through November. Foot traffic in Business Improvement Districts inside the zone increased 5%, outpacing commercial areas elsewhere in the city. Manhattan office leasing has had the strongest years in recent memory, with sharp gains in both square footage leased and price per square foot.
Second, the program’s legal foundation has proven solid. The MTA’s voluminous Environmental Assessment report has withstood criticisms and court challenges. Not a single lawsuit has succeeded.
Most importantly, congestion pricing is delivering tangible benefits to the people who rely on the transportation system every day. As of November, a net $500 million has been collected for the MTA’s Capital Program. Because the money is bonded and legally dedicated, no governor can divert it to other uses. We estimate that at this rate the MTA may be able to issue $9 billion in bonds to modernize aging subway signals, make stations accessible, and advance major expansion projects such as the Second Ave. subway to Harlem, four new Metro-North stations in the Bronx, and a new 16-mile rail link between Brooklyn and Queens.
Safety outcomes have also improved. We found that traffic fatalities within the zone dropped 40% through November, while serious injuries declined 9% — substantially larger than reductions observed outside the zone.
Not only are people safer, but they are healthier. Studies by Cornell University and the MTA found a reduction in pollution both inside and outside the zone. We found noise complaints related to traffic fell 23% within the CRZ, compared with a 13% decline elsewhere in the city.
Fears that the Upper East and West Sides above 61st St. would become parking lots were unfounded. Parking in these neighborhoods has always been constrained, with limited curb space and high garage prices, leaving no real capacity for a surge in parked vehicles.
Concerns about massive traffic diversion to the South Bronx and Staten Island have also not materialized, though the picture is nuanced. While truck volume is up slightly on the George Washington Bridge, nobody told the Cross Bronx Expressway, where we’ve found a 6% decline in volume as compared to 2024. A recent study conducted by Charles Komanoff specifically targeting the streets near the Hunts Point Market found no significant change in speeds from a year ago. Truck traffic on the Triborough Bridge also fell slightly, and the MTA reports no evidence of widespread diversion in Bronx monitoring locations.
One genuine puzzle remains: despite roughly 70,000 fewer vehicles entering the zone each day, traffic speeds have improved only modestly. One plausible explanation is a surprising jump in taxi activity. In 2025, the share of taxi trips within the zone increased, alongside a 10% increase in the number of taxis operating citywide and a 16% increase in taxi vehicle-hours traveled compared to 2024.
Because the vast majority of taxi trips are entirely or partially within the zone, this growth is concentrated in the CRZ and may help explain why speed gains have been more muted than vehicle reductions alone would suggest. That is not a failure of congestion pricing, but a reminder that managing congestion is an ongoing, data-driven process. For more on how taxis affect traffic check out VIM: Not Just Another Acronym by NYC DOT.
One year in, congestion pricing has reduced traffic, improved safety and air quality, strengthened transit funding, and disproven many of its critics. As data becomes available, the focus should shift from relitigating old fears to fine-tuning a policy that is already delivering real benefits for New Yorkers.
Schwartz is a former NYC traffic commissioner. McGuinness is the director of the Sam Schwartz Transportation Research Program at the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College.
