Congestion Pricing In NYC Could Hit Jam Until 2023: MTA

NEW YORK CITY — A planned toll for Manhattan motorists moseying below 61st Street might have hit a bureaucratic bottleneck.

Federal foot dragging on an environmental review could delay the start of congestion pricing, according to a MTA disclosure released last week.

There simply isn't any assurance the Federal Highway Administration will approve a review for congestion pricing in the Central Business District — an area covering Manhattan south of 61st Street — according to the disclosure.

“In light of the delays caused by the absence of FHWA approval, MTA Bridges and Tunnels’ implementation of the CBD Tolling Program could be delayed until 2023,” the disclosure states.

A deal struck in 2019 paved the way for congestion pricing in Manhattan as a way for MTA to reduce traffic jams and raise $15 billion in revenue.

But the plan to begin the tolls starting in January 2021 hit a snag with President Donald Trump's administration. MTA officials this summer warned of delays.

The disclosure appears to have made the project's delay official.

A MTA spokesperson told the New York Daily News that officials hope the congestion pricing plan will move forward under President-elect Joe Biden's incoming administration.