Panel Recommends NYC Congestion-Fee Plan

The commission in charge of creating congestion-fee plan for New York City voted Thursday to approve a scaled-down version of an original proposal, but the plan would still charge cars and most trucks fees to enter the central part of Manhattan, the Associated Press reported.

The plan calls for an $8 toll for cars entering Manhattan below 60th Street from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, AP said. Trucks would pay $21, with an exemption for those with low emissions.

An earlier plan floated last year, which had the backing of both New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I) and Gov. Elliot Spitzer (D) had included a greater area, with a northern boundary of 86th Street.

The plan, which passed the commission by a vote of 13 to 2, is intended to generate an estimated $491 million a year that would be dedicated to expanding and modernizing the region’s mass transportation system, the New York Times reported Friday.

It must still approved by the City Council and New York State Legislature, AP reported.

Besides the fee plan, the commission has looked at such ideas as creating new tolls at river crossings in the city, AP said.