New York’s yellow cabs fear congestion toll will ruin them

YELLOW cab and taxi firms are facing a London-style congestion charge with New York set to become the first US city to impose such a toll.

The fee to drive into Manhattan’s central business district, to be introduced next year, will hit $23 (£20) during rush hour. The standard daily charge in the UK capital is £15.

Supporters of the proposal say it will help combat pollution as it works to hit emissions target.

The MTA, the state agency that runs New York City’s subways, buses and commuter rail lines, hopes the road toll will reduce the number of cars entering Manhattan by up to 20 per cent, help boost ridership and save them from financial ruin.

But taxi unions say the move hurts already-struggling ride-hail services and could put many of the yellow cabs out of business.

“Whenever they have a problem, the MTA come to us,” said Allen Kaplan, owner of Team Systems Taxi in Long Island City, noting other transit-supporting charges that have been in place for years.

The fees would be on top of an existing $2.50-a-trip surcharge added in 2019 to all yellow taxi trips south of 96th Street in Manhattan, one of the world’s busiest commercial districts which includes Times Square and Madison Square Garden.

“Who is going to take a ride for hire with an extra $9 to $23 on the fare?” Bhairavi Desai, New York Taxi Workers Alliance executive director, asked.

Municipal Market Analytics wrote in a research note published last week that the congestion charge would be “politically and economically explosive”.

New York lawmakers approved the plan in 2019, and it was originally projected

‘We’ve helped out and we’ve sacrificed, but this is another robbery. This is a gun to our head’

to start last year. But the federal government under President Donald Trump stalled.

The beleaguered yellow taxi industry had just begun to bounce back from the pandemic, when tourist numbers were down and demand for trips plummeted.

“The cab drivers are all hard-working people, but it’s getting harder and harder for them,” Mr Kaplan told The City NY website. “We’ve helped out and we’ve sacrificed, but this is another robbery. This is a gun to our head.”