Gov. Kathy Hochul thinks congestion pricing would cost Manhattan drivers too much dough.
During a news conference Thursday, Hochul claimed pizzerias would pass along the cost of the tolls to hungry New Yorkers in search of a cheap bite.
“Everything from the cost of a piece of pizza is going to go up because there’ll be charges imposed that’ll be passed onto consumers. This moment in time is not the right time to put that on the backs of New Yorkers,” Hochul said.
The pizza remark was the governor’s latest defense of her move to halt congestion pricing, which would have charged drivers a $15 daytime fee to enter Manhattan below 60th Street. The fees were supposed to bankroll $15 billion worth of MTA upgrades to mass transit infrastructure.
The MTA planned to launch the tolls on June 30. Hochul had publicly supported congestion pricing for more than year, but flip-flopped last week and ordered the program be put on pause indefinitely. The decision has since been lambasted by transit and environmental advocates — and city Comptroller Brad Lander has threatened to sue over Hochul’s move.
Hochul has also said she pumped the brakes on congestion pricing after listening to “ordinary” New Yorkers at diners in Midtown.