NYC Congestion Reduction Zone Impact

I'm curious if the new Congestion Reduction Zone fee ($9 to drive out of my neighborhood, and basically any street below 60th in Manhattan) is effecting shopping habits. It just went into effect on Sunday and I'm already reducing the shops that I am willing to apply for because I have to calculate a $9 toll hit for most shops that I accept. I am furious and frustrated. I feel completely trapped.

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Like daily living in NYC isn't expensive enough already. That bites. But maybe can be counted at tax time as a business expense?

I saw this and immediately thought how that would impact someone in NYC. I don't live in the city but I live in NY and have considered going there at times to do shops. This would deter me for sure. If you can deduct tolls, bridges and travel expenses, then I would assume this fee could also be tax deductible.

I think it is awful, it is already too expensive to live there, even visit there!

Having it be tax deductible would not likely make it profitable if it were not profitable already.

Curious where people live that they are driving into Manhattan (not judging, just curious).
I live in Queens and work (FT office job) in Manhattan, but I never drive in. I try to take shops I can walk to on my lunch hour or after work. If I schedule a nice dinner or night out as a shop, I take the train.

So for us non-new yorkers, is this toll trying to prevent cars from being on the road and trying to make people find alternative transportation?

I'm sure the MSC will have to do something if their shops are not getting filled because others are not willing to do the $9 hit either. But if you are taking shops in another person's area, maybe they will be happy since it will mean less "outsiders" willing to come into "their" territory.

Daddy, yes. The extra charge is meant to deter drivers which, theoretically, will lessen traffic.

I generally consider anything within a 45 min drive "my area." But now going to Queens, which is about 3 miles from me will incur a charge. But so will going north of 60th st which is about a mile and a half. This isn't like having a long route and lots of the shops that I do sit on the job boards until bonused.

There are a lot of stated reasons for the toll, which is supposed to reduce cars on the road and increase revenue for public transportation.

What I find reprehensible is that they did not properly set up an easy to use exemption system for people who are disabled (I applied for my spouse who is disabled and we were told that there is NO timeline for when we can expect his application to be processed). And most NYC subway stations do not have elevators so you might have to go 20 blocks out of your way to actually get down onto the subway platform or back up again.

Secondly, even if you live in the Zone you have to pay to get out. If you make less than $60k per year you can get a 50% tax credit for rides in excess of your first 10 per month. So the minimum that one will pay per month is $90 before any discount is applied.

And Uber and Lyft lobbied so that they are not charged, but their passengers will be.

It is a pure money grab from the people who already pay too much to live in NY (often to be near family).

I live in the district but often try to bundle shops with taking my elderly mother to doctors or errands in Queens or on LI. I used to be able to get there toll free by taking the Williamsburg bridge (even if it did take a little longer).

It's $18 to cross the George or go thru the tunnel from NJ plus now this extra toll...it's ridiculous and must be hurting the regular folks who need to go into that area in NYC every day for work. One reason I do not shop in NYC, main reason being safety. They are pushing the subway, but subways aren't the safest way to get from pt A to pt B. NYC is a mess!

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I will use the burger shop fee as a quick reimbursement for the toll when I must drive into the city which is not often. Only on Sundays usually. For 15 minutes of work, it's not bad. I can actually top the burger shop with other shops too on the same day but I rarely do any shops in Manhattan anyway.

They also increased the bridge tolls. You can no longer get into NYC for free. All of the free bridges effectively have a $9 toll. I used to work in the city and went to grad school, but wouldn't consider driving, mostly because of the parking. I went to see my friend and parked at a garage and it was like $50. I was able to get a mystery shop for the parking garage though!

I grew up in NYC. (Brooklyn, which for those who do not know is part of NYC) Granted it was a long time ago. We had a car but we only used it on a few weekends If we as a family took a trip out of the city. We always used public transport. I knew no one who used a car unless they were going for a trip out of the city. Even when we were living further away my dad took the train into the city and then a local bus or something to his work destination. Central Manhattan was congested even way back then but it was mostly taxis.
I would not like to live in a place with a fee to come and go however, when I was in France they had a similar situation in Rennes where my daughter was attending school but it seemed well enough thought out that the local people had no issue with the system.
I would think that shops that get to the bonus stage would be harder to fill unless they padded that bonus with even more money to offset that fee. Its horrible.

Well, the MSC's need to tack on at least $18.00, to each shop. Or bombard them with the requests. Maybe they might consider it. I can dream. The fact that they made a provision for UBER & LYFT, but no consideration for the disabled, is quite disgusting.

saw an article about this issue on national news

[www.foxnews.com]

I also live in the Congestion Zone and have added the cost to my fee for audits I do in Long Island and New Jersey where I have to drive. Of course the MSC was not happy but I need to cover my costs!

Servimer has raised its pay rate for non-video parking shops in the Congestion Zone to $33.25. Hopefully this will help with the business expense for those who want to or have to venture south of 60th Street. We also reimburse fully for the parking fee, up to 24 hours.

Serving as liaison between Servimer and the larger mystery shopping community. (Servimer.shopmetrics.com)

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