School buses, city vehicles could be exempt from NYC congestion pricing: MTA
NEW YORK (PIX11) — After the list of those eligible to be exempt from New York City’s congestion pricing was released, the MTA issued clarifications on the exemptions.
The MTA is limiting the amount of exemptions to the following:
Qualifying authorized emergency vehicles.
Qualifying vehicles transporting people with disabilities. This will include exemption plans for qualifying organizational vehicles that transport people with disabilities and for individuals with qualifying disabilities.
Specialized government vehicles designed to perform public works for their agency’s purpose, and not used for general transportation of people or general deliveries.
Qualifying authorized commuter buses and commuter vans registered with the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission.
The MTA said that school buses contracted with the city’s Department of Education, no matter if they are serving public or independent schools, will be exempt. Buses that provide scheduled commuter services open to the public will also be exempt from congestion pricing.
New York City and the MTA also collaborated to determine which of the city’s vehicles fall under the category of “specialized government vehicles.” According to the MTA, these vehicles are “those that are critical to perform public work in the congestion zone—which comprise well under half of the city’s non-emergency fleet.”
Jonathan Rizk is a digital journalist who has covered local news in the New York City and Washington D.C. areas. He has been with PIX11 since August 2022. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter.
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