Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Andrew Cuomo

Poll: City Support for Congestion Pricing Is Even Stronger Than Statewide

Gov. Cuomo wanted to start congestion pricing in 2021.

|HNTB

Congestion pricing supporters were pleased this week when a new poll showed that 52 percent of New York State residents support the tolling scheme when asked.

But the numbers in the Siena Research poll are even stronger within every borough of the city — despite opponents' continued demagoguery that congestion pricing represents some sort of unfair tax on a middle class that simply must drive into Manhattan.

According to numbers that Siena crunched exclusively for Streetsblog, respondents in the four boroughs (minus Staten Island, for which there were insufficient respondents) support congestion pricing by even wider margins than respondents all over the state

Here are the numbers:

    • Manhattan: 60.6 percent in favor, 32.5 percent opposed (pro-toll margin: 28.1 percent).
    • Bronx: 58.7 percent in favor, 34.3 percent opposed (pro-toll margin: 24.4 percent).
    • Queens: 54.8 percent in favor, 38.2 percent opposed (pro-toll margin: 16.6 percent).
    • Brooklyn: 54.9 percent in favor, 39.9 percent opposed (pro-toll margin: 15 percent).

The numbers make it clear that borough residents are far ahead of some of their elected officials in Albany on the issue. This week, Streetsblog interviewed many legislators from the city and found a surprisingly high number of them on the fence — despite the good poll numbers.

Toby Ann Stavisky: She's got issues.
Toby Ann Stavisky: She's got issues.
Toby Ann Stavisky: She's got issues.

"I have concerns," Assembly Member Helene Weinstein of Brooklyn told Streetsblog. "Concerns for the people who drive.”

 And Queens State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky still believes that congestion pricing would hurt lower-income people, even though statistics show that they don't regularly drive into Manhattan during rush hour.

"I think it’s a tax on the lower middle class, yes," she said. "When I went to college and I took economics, one of the things I remembered was that the tax should be based on the ability to pay. This is not. This is based on owning a car."

Fact check: In Stavisky's district, only 3.6 percent of commuters regularly drive into Manhattan — and the ones who do have median incomes 20.3 percent higher than the district-wide average, according to the Tri-State Transportation Campaign.

with Ben Verde and David Meyer

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Likely Mayor Mamdani Supports Daylighting as DOT Digs In Heels

The next mayor will have to overcome a deeply entrenched bureaucracy opposed to the common-sense policy.

October 6, 2025

Under Pressure: Uber’s Navigation System Endangers the Public With Reckless Driving Directions

An Uber driver made an illegal u-turn and hit someone, but the in-app navigation told him to do it and the company won't give up the code.

October 6, 2025

Monday’s Headlines: Trump Games Continue Edition

Trump restored some security grant for New York, but billions of dollars in grant remain on ice. Plus more news.

October 6, 2025

Friday Video: Meet the Subway’s Straphanger-Free Trains

We've all seen them. Now, thanks to YouTube's "Half as Interesting," we can tell you the purpose of each one.

October 3, 2025

The MTA Is Headed To The Lab To Design The Ridgewood Busway

A filthy private road underneath the elevated M tracks could become a gleaming bus-first corridor.

October 3, 2025

Friday’s Headlines: Good News Edition

The Department of Transportation reports that traffic deaths are way down through the first three quarters of 2025. Plus other news.

October 3, 2025
See all posts