TRUCKS PAY HALF-PRICE AT NYC NIGHT CROSSINGS TO EASE “SUMMER OF HELL” TRAFFIC

Some New Yorkers are calling it the “summer of hell” as highway traffic is expected to surge in the coming months due to Amtrak and Long Island Railroad repairs reducing train service.

As part of a broader plan to help ease traffic concerns, the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) says that, from July 10 to Sept. 1, trucks will pay half-price on tolls for MTA crossings in New York between the hours of 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.

The hope is that this will reduce traffic during peak hours by encouraging truckers to take advantage of cheaper tolls overnight.

Crossings subject to the half-price toll plan include the Henry Hudson Bridge, Whitestone Bridge, Throgs Neck Bridge, RFK Triborough Bridge, Queens Midtown Tunnel, Hugh L. Carey Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge, and Cross Bay Veterans Memorial Bridge.

In addition, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has ordered the acceleration of construction on MTA bridges and tunnels, with the hope of completing major projects on these crossings by July 8.

“Our top priority is ensuring all New Yorkers can get where they need to go as quickly and easily as possible this summer and we're taking every conceivable step to prepare for Amtrak's summer of hell,” Cuomo says. “By aggressively expediting construction we are taking action to ease commutes and provide New Yorkers with peace of mind.”

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