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Toll Increases on Cuomo Bridge Approved by Thruway Authority

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Mario Cuomo Bridge in Tarrytown, NY - over the Hudson River with view of Nyack in the background — The Mario M. Cuomo Bridge: will it stand the test of time?

December 1, 2020

By Rick Pezzullo—

Toll increases on the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge have been approved by the New York State Thruway Authority.

Beginning on January 2, 2021, the toll for motorists using New York-issued E-ZPass will increase from $4.75 to $5.25. The toll will go up again in 2022 to $5.75. Drivers who pay by mail will pay 30% more, which translates to $6.83 next year and $7.48 in 2022. A $2 surcharge is also applied per statement.

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Tolls on the Thruway have not been adjusted since 2010. Since that time, Thruway Authority officials said toll revenues have been reinvested into the system by replacing/rehabilitating 116 bridges, resurfacing more than 2,000 lane miles of the highway and spending more than $6.6 billion on the capital program, which includes the new bridge that runs from Tarrytown to Rockland County.

“Given that these groundbreaking projects are transforming travel on the Thruway and ushering in a new era of a modern transportation network for motorists in New York, this is the right time both operationally and financially for us to begin this process,” Thruway Authority Executive Director Matthew J. Driscoll stated recently. “The feedback from motorists about a potential toll adjustment has been essential in this process. We are committed to keeping tolls affordable, while providing the Thruway the necessary revenue for our capital needs.”

In July, a Toll Advisory Panel held listening sessions in Rockland and Westchester Counties to review toll rates, potential resident and commuter discount programs and commercial vehicle rates on the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. Feedback from the listening sessions, as well as recommendations by Stantec Inc., the Thruway Authority’s independent traffic engineer, were considered in the proposal.

Drivers with an out-of-state E-ZPass will be charged 15 percent more when crossing the bridge, and large trucks will pay 20 percent more than passenger vehicles.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Thruway Authority has estimated it could see a decrease in revenue of about 20 percent this year.

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