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NYC congestion pricing tolls rake in $562M during first year
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Published Jan 28, 2026
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By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Published Jan 28, 2026
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New York City’s congestion pricing tolls raked in $562 million after expenses during their first year of operation, according to financial figures announced by the MTA Wednesday.
MTA officials said the tolls brought in even more money than anticipated, in large part due to efficiencies the transit agency found in the camera system's operating costs.
“[Congestion pricing is] exceeding the $500 million target and providing dedicated funding for critical transit investments,” MTA Chief Financial Officer Jai Patel said during the agency’s monthly board meeting. “So taken together, 2025 played out largely as planned.”
But the figure is still less than what the MTA had originally planned. That’s because Gov. Kathy Hochul in June 2024 directed the MTA to pause the program ahead of the general election. The program was originally priced at $15 during peak periods, but was later dropped to $9 before the relaunch in January 2025.
According to data Gothamist obtained through a public records request, operating costs that cut into the toll programs revenue includes labor, maintenance of the cameras, power bills to keep the cameras on and other “professional services.” On an average month, the MTA spends at least $10 million just to operate the tolling program.
MTA officials have also celebrated the program for leading to a reduction in traffic. The agency reported 27 million fewer vehicles entered the Manhattan congestion tolling zone below 60th Street. Traffic speeds in the zone have improved and bus speeds also sped up 2.3%. The air quality has also improved across the five boroughs following the launch of the tolls, according to a study from researchers at Cornell University.
The money raised so far by the MTA will be used to finance $15 billion of major infrastructure upgrades, including purchasing new modern train cars, making more stations accessible and extending the Second Avenue Subway into East Harlem.
Oral arguments in a lawsuit filed by the MTA against the federal Department of Transportation are playing out in federal court Wednesday afternoon. President Donald Trump declared the tolling program was “DEAD” on his social media platform last year, after claiming it was an unfair tax on drivers.
The judge in the case issued a temporary restraining order against the federal government last summer, after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy continued to threaten pulling federal highway funding in New York City.
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Ramsey Khalifeh
Ramsey Khalifeh is a transportation reporter on the NYC Accountability desk covering the largest transit system in the country. He was previously a general assignment reporter at Gothamist and worked on the Boston Globe's metro and copy desk. Got a tip? Email [email protected]
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