By Adie Tomer
There’s an adage, often credited to Winston Churchill, that Americans will eventually do the right thing, but only after they’ve exhausted all other possibilities. It’s a timeless bit of criticism, as well as the perfect summation of why America is about to experience its most consequential transportation reform in generations.
After multiple false starts over the past two decades, New York City is finally ready to launch a congestion pricing program in 2024. Drivers into Manhattan will pay a significant fee to enter the area from the Battery up through Midtown Manhattan. By deterring some people from traveling by car into Manhattan’s dense central neighborhoods, the fee will help alleviate traffic on some of the country’s busiest roads, provide much-needed revenue and passengers for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s train and bus lines, and clean the air for everyone’s benefit.