Long before she became a champion for congestion pricing, Gov. Hochul spent a decade opposing tolls in upstate New York — and was even hailed as a “stop-the-tolls pioneer.”
From her perch on the upstate Hamburg town board to her time in Congress, Hochul fought to get NYS Thruway toll booths torn down and railed against toll hikes, arguing that they placed “a heavy burden on the communities and businesses” — a stark contrast from her vehement defense of the controversial $9 fee in NYC.
In 1998, town board member Hochul described the tolls in a Buffalo News op-ed as a “noose” that was “strangling” the city and having a “chilling effect” on business.
“The citizens of Buffalo and its first- and second-ring suburbs should not be penalized every time they leave their boundaries by paying tolls to drive to work, go to the mall, visit downtown attractions or take the kids to play hockey,” Hochul wrote.
In an ironic foreshadowing how critics now describe her own congestion-pricing cash grab for the MTA, Hochul argued, “It’s time for the state Thruway Authority, a non-elected entity, which spends over $40 million just to collect tolls, to stop nickel-and-diming us to death.”
The 35-cent Thruway tolls, which were initially charged to pay off bonds and were expected to expire in 1996, were a “nail in the coffin” for business people, she said.
The same idiom has been employed by taxi industry leaders and restaurant owners in describing NYC congestion pricing, which opponents say is a tax on the working class and bad for business.
In 2003, as deputy county clerk, Hochul convinced her boss, then-County Clerk David Swarts, to join her in lobbying against tolls.
When the Thruway Authority jacked tolls up to 75 cents two years later, she participated in a “Penny Protest,” where drivers handed over the fee one cent at a time, according to the Niagara Falls Reporter.
By 2007, some of the tolls had been successfully removed and Hochul, newly elected as Erie County Clerk, bragged on her website about having “championed” the pet project for nine years.
“I want to build on the success we had in removing the … tolls as I undertake new challenges representing you and the residents of Erie County,” she said.
In 2012, as a member of Congress, Hochul pivoted to another toll crusade, writing to then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo to oppose a 45% toll hike on truck drivers. “If implemented, this would seriously hinder economic activity in our region,” she contended.
She said drivers would have to avoid the Thruway altogether or pass on the additional costs to customers — just as NYC-area businesses from funeral homes to event planners have been forced to pass on the new congestion charges to customers since the program began.
Months later, Hochul boasted in a press release that she was dubbed the “stop-the-tolls pioneer” by the Buffalo News.
Her Encyclopedia Britannica entry even includes her “crusade” against highway tolls early in her political career.
New Yorkers slammed Hochul for changing her tune and supporting NYC tolls, which charge $9 for cars and up to $21.60 for trucks traveling below 60th Street during peak hours. This week, she and MTA Chair Janno Lieber vowed to defy an order from President Trump to shut down the program.
Susan Lee, president of the group New Yorkers Against Congestion Pricing Tax, slammed Hochul’s reversal as “hypocritical.”
“If Western New Yorkers [couldn’t] afford the [Thruway] toll, what makes her think everyday New Yorkers can afford the [congestion pricing] toll?” Lee told The Post.
Lee said Hochul may have championed the working class back in the day but her support for congestion pricing is clearly a ploy ahead of her re-election campaign to curry favor from lefties who back the costly program.
“She needs to get the votes from that segment of the population, so she doesn’t care about the true effects of this regressive tax on every day New Yorkers,” Lee added.
Queens Councilman Robert Holden agreed Hochul’s decisions are “purely political.”
“Kathy Hochul has always been a flip-flopping politician with no real principles and certainly no integrity,” Holden told The Post.
“She knows the congestion scam tax is bad for New York — she’s admitted as much before — but, as always, her decisions are purely political, not based on what’s right for the people,” he added.
A spokesperson for Hochul defended her support of congestion pricing, saying it “meets the unique needs of New York City.”
“New York City had the worst traffic congestion in the world until Governor Hochul took bold action to help commuters,” the spokesperson said, adding, “It’s reducing congestion, reducing pollution, improving drive times, investing in public transportation and bringing more foot traffic directly to small and local businesses — and the results speak for themselves.”
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